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Those forgotten stalwarts
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Unless there is professionalism, it will be difficult for Tamil Nadu to make a mark in the sporting arena.
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AS A country, India does not seem to be good at mobilising resources. Whether it is sport, the sciences or politics, the effort to tap talent is lacking. Indians have made a mark as individuals, but human resource in this nation of over a billion people is yet to be tapped to the maximum in order to achieve progress in various fields.
Take the number of top class sportspersons in the metros. Are we roping them in to coach the youngsters in schools and colleges to enlarge the talent base in the respective regions? The answer is definitely `no'.
A former Dutch volleyball player, who came to conduct a clinic at the FIVB Development Centre in Chennai, said his country's population was very small. So the Dutch Federation sent its national stars to schools and colleges to interact with the youngsters and lure them into taking up this sport. This is the first major step. Then comes high class coaching for the talented ones. It is no wonder that Holland won the Olympic and World League titles in the past 10 years. This is a wonderful example of how human resource has been used to achieve great things.
It is very important to bring top sportspersons together and draw upon their experience to ensure sport gets a fillip and reaches world standards. This is what China is doing at present. But, it is disturbing when one learns of the plight of outstanding sportspersons in our country. The media highlights such stories now and then. For instance, it was shocking to hear that a hockey Olympian today sells vegetables to eke out a livelihood. An outstanding footballer in the Asian Championship silver medal winning team pulls a cart for a daily wage. The lot of those who brought laurels to the country should only make us hang our heads in shame.
There are two aspects to be considered for having caused this situation — the skills of talented players have not been mobilised such that they can be passed on to younger players and neglecting players who have done much for the development of sport.
Quite often, media-persons stumble upon these stories by chance and when they try to get more information on the background of the players concerned they hardly get any help from the associations. Very few associations keep records of outstanding players.
Sports administration in the country is yet to reach a professional standard. This is where the problem starts. The sports associations and federations have hardly taken any initiative to maintain a data bank of even internationals in their respective games. Over the years, when the younger generation takes over as office-bearers, it will hardly have information about the stalwarts and internationals whose knowledge can be used by entrusting them with the job of coaching youngsters at the school and college level.
Take the Services, for example. In the 1960s and 1970s, it was nurturing most of the talented sportspersons in the country. Be it football, basketball, volleyball, athletics, weightlifting, boxing or any other Olympic event, it was the Services that recruited players from all over the country, dominated the national sports scene and contributed players to Indian teams, which achieved remarkable success at the Asian level.
Where are those internationals? Have their skills and services been utilised in their respective regions after retirement? If that had happened, India would have been among the Asian giants - China, Korea and Japan.
The very fact that India is not able to get to the fourth position in most of the games shows that the national federations and State associations have failed to mobilise the available resources to improve the standard of various games.
It is true that not all the internationals and stalwarts are capable of coaching. Some do not relish the job. Others may not have the patience to pass on their skills to others. But at least 50 per cent of the internationals must be definitely willing to step in to boost the standard of sport in their region. What is happening now is that the players of yesteryear keep away from association activities, stating lack of support and recognition from these very federations and associations as a reason.
Most of the associations do not even honour the stalwarts during major events. The association officials blame the former internationals and outstanding players for not being concerned about the game in which they excelled or for `creating problems' for them.
There is no meeting point, which is unfortunate. The local bodies are run by democratically elected office-bearers. It is their duty to bring referees, coaches, former internationals, players and well-wishers of a sport together, involve them in discussions and in the process of building strong State and national teams.
Unfortunately, this is not happening. Chennai has many international stars. There are around 30 in volleyball and 40 in basketball and the number is more if players in other parts of the State are included. There are top class sportspersons in boxing, football, weightlifting, bodybuilding, chess, tennis, table tennis, athletics, hockey, swimming, kabaddi and triathlon. There must be a meeting of minds and all must put the interest of the State and the nation first. Only then can results be achieved.
Chennai city has all the facilities. The present Government has opened all the stadia for practice sessions. There is plenty to achieve. Of course, individually there are quite a few people who work silently to promote sport. The people who conduct all-India tournaments and regular coaching classes are ones who keep sport going in the State. But, with professionalism, and the involvement of all the former internationals and outstanding players, sport will receive a tremendous boost in the State. And this is what sports lovers want.
M. C. RAMAN
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