Now even the Cubans know there's a problem with sports in India!
I read this -> India looks to Cuba to revive sports. Prompted me to write this post.
The biggest problem in India is that the parents say:
1. Oye khel kood ke kya hoga? Chalo padhai karo!
2. Tumhaare school mein khelne ko kyu bolte hai? Tum wahan pe khelne jaate ho ki padhaai karne?
3. Bahut ghatiya school hai, sirf khelne ko bolte hai. Kal tumhe naye school mein daakhil karenge.
The parents, since independence haven't asked the kids to play, the kids haven't grown up to be sportsmen and hence there are no good coaches today. If we don't have many kids playing the sport today, we won't have many coaches in the future. Problem - sports in India isn't enough to bring the bread home.
Indians now need to look at other 3rd world countries where, mind you, dictators have been ruling since past 60 years to tell us - BOSS THERE IS A PROBLEM.
As if we didn't know. As if anything is going to change very soon. As if in next 10 years we can get 2 gold medals in Olympics.
Also, the government has its own reason(s) - How can we make 20 hockey stadiums across the country if the farmers are dying of hunger and poverty??
The biggest problem in India is that the parents say:
1. Oye khel kood ke kya hoga? Chalo padhai karo!
2. Tumhaare school mein khelne ko kyu bolte hai? Tum wahan pe khelne jaate ho ki padhaai karne?
3. Bahut ghatiya school hai, sirf khelne ko bolte hai. Kal tumhe naye school mein daakhil karenge.
The parents, since independence haven't asked the kids to play, the kids haven't grown up to be sportsmen and hence there are no good coaches today. If we don't have many kids playing the sport today, we won't have many coaches in the future. Problem - sports in India isn't enough to bring the bread home.
Indians now need to look at other 3rd world countries where, mind you, dictators have been ruling since past 60 years to tell us - BOSS THERE IS A PROBLEM.
As if we didn't know. As if anything is going to change very soon. As if in next 10 years we can get 2 gold medals in Olympics.
Also, the government has its own reason(s) - How can we make 20 hockey stadiums across the country if the farmers are dying of hunger and poverty??
"Sports in India aren't enough to bring bread home"
True enough. Add to that, the corruption and embezzlement by higher authorities of their respective sports. As if the funding wasn't too low already, the people concerned decide to steal what's given as well.
To some extent, the government is not really at fault. Unfortunately, there are issues in India which are far more important than sport. While I agree that they should ensure steady funding for infrastructure et al, you cannot ignore the fact that 300 million Indians live on less than a dollar a day.
As far as the hockey debacle is concerned, too much is being made out of it. They came 2nd in a group of five, losing only once. The fought hard. And they did win well when the going was good. And too much is being made out of not qualifying at all. As if a medal was ensured even if we had qualified.