1.2 billion people...& ONE gold!!!

My heart aches when i hear it...& especially from people who find it a logical analogy to quote for the dismal performance of India in the sports arena!!! Had this been a criteria, then Japan/Autralian would always have ben way far below in the medal tally!!!Well, much has been criticised & said on the despicable condition of sports here. But never has anyone made an attempt to dig deep & explore beyond the obvious...that why has India not been able to produce quality sportsmen, who could prove their talent in the world stage. The answer conspicuous to everyone is the effete efforts by govt. But NO...there is much more to it than wat meets the eye.
People find it an easy excuse always by pouring it all on the govt...that it has not made any attempts, neither invested time, nor money in sports etc etc. But delving into this we find something more...I ask you all, Is not the govt made by the people? Dont we chose our representatives from amongst us? Then wont the decisions made by them be affceted by OUR mentality?!!! YES, thats what I want to say. The fact that India has not been able to produce quality sportsmen is not solely due to govt's irresponsibility, but because of the negative attitude of the common public. The common man in india is a satisfied soul with its bread & butter. Indian public has either of two ambitions- 'Bijnas', 'Sarkari naukri'...& Aila!! the world is all under our feet...Taking it forward, we have a genetic disorder to push our sons into the profession that we are involved in...or to keep our daughters at home to get help in 'chauka chulha'. Bare those old souls but ask yourself, how many people, be it your colleague, friend, neighbour or own brother/sister have you motivated to continue playing the sport they excel in? We being an educated lot have not been able to motivate those capable sportsmen then how can we expect the govt to do so!!?? Sports in India have been taken more as entertainment than a profession. Children are mostly bared from playing more than 2 hrs a day, considering the amount of studies or fearing the injuries etc...The dreams of several young players have been strangled to death by this attitude of ours! We do not have a system where these the talent is explored & exploited. And this system arises from the ground root level! Back there in US/China, people pursue sports as a career, give more than 100% of time to it & are passionate about winning. They have a family support which is a neccessary ingredient for the sweet taste of success. We do have some rare examples like Sachin who actually gave up studies to feed their appetite for sports. But we should know that Sachin was a born prodigy and not a result of the govt's efforts.
Talking again about common public, i need to ask that in India, we talk about reservations & privileges in the name of castes & religions. Had there ever been a protest...or even a voice raised to ask for the benefit & rights of sportsmen?? In countries lik US, there are scholarships provided for sportsmen, which they take full opportunity of. While in India, it has never been thought of!
Second, Do we know how much of efforts are needed to win an Olympic medal? Its not jus the performance of an individual person on the D-Day, but a quasi-static process followed for years by a professional team of experienced people. The path to podium needs a consistent approach towards it by carefully honing the skills of sportsperson, maintaining their fitness, analysing the competitor's strengths and then rigorously vouching to overpower it. & let me tell u, this needs MONEY which finally is the greatest hinderance for us. Now when it comes to money, Not everyone is as lucky as Abhinav Bindra to be born with a silver rifle(oops, spoon). Looking at the medal tally since 1970s, we see that the top positions were occupied by first USSR, which fell down in its ranking after its disintegration, then US which ruled for almost two decades & now China in this olympix. These obviously the superpowers in terms of their economy had no issues spending profusely on sports. While considering India in that place, I'd like to quote an anecdote to you when Olympic Hockey Gold Champions- India, were denied of even entering the field to play, jus because they were unable to buy appropriate sport shoes for the match! Such despicable was condition of india before Independence. & after independence, the govt had more responsibility to augment the condition of Indian economy, rather than nurturing the sports.
You might counter it by quoting examples of countries smaller & poorer than us, like Ethiopia or Jamaica who consistently win gold in Athletic events...I agree, but analysing it we find that those winning gold were mostly already talented & gifted souls, who had just to get an impetus in the form of a better training session, and they availed it somehow. Also in India, skills need to be developed as the physique we have which really is incomparable to the athletes & players mostly from other parts of the world. This really takes us at backfoot in games such as soccer, Basketball or Track & Field events, where a good physique aids in the performance during the game.
We do have had some sports that have lost their sheen and shine like Hockey, Kabaddi, Wrestling etc. which i agree had been due to negligence from the govt's side, but i still have my notion in place...Why don't we give it a head start from our side, rather than waiting for the govt reforms? We have international level of schools, which provide a platform and give ample opportunity to excel in sports. We need to break the notion that career can only be made through studies. Its not compulsary to push students into studies if they'r not interested, or if they can't cope with them. I would quote a sincere example of the latest legend 'Michael Phelps', who himself suffered from ADHD, where he could not concentrate much on anythin, moreover studies.!! but he made it his forte, rather than faltering over it.
One last thing i need to say is that Indians would certainly prove their mettle on the field in recent future. If you take another logical analysis, I'd like to quote the growing Indian economy that has made a mark in a short span of time since the implementation of LPG in 1991. Similar reforms need to be executed for the upliftment of sports & soon India will be competing at a global level.
By the time I'm writing it, I can hear the cheers of some people around me celebrating the second medal, a bronze in wrestling after 1952!!! Probably we also get a medal in boxing!...Laughing??? I know we Indians never lose hope even if we know the reality, because we are attached more emotionallty than logically! But watever it is...I'm proud of it! From your view you see India's rise to 3 medals since 1947...From my view I see, India's start from 3 medals 2008 onwards.