iSporter Ashvir Khurana had a 'Rang de Basanti' moment. While on its way to becoming an economic superpower, 2010 might just offer India the opportunity to become a sporting superpower starting with February's Hockey World Cup.
US President, Barrack Obama recently released a statement appreciating the rapid strides in development made by India. He issued a warning to other countries concerning the power house India is turning into. This is also true of the rapid developments made by India in the sports field. Slowly but surely India is molding into a sports hub which the world cannot ignore. Be it the question of hosting important sport events or the success of Indian sport stars in the international stage, India has commanded respect from one and all.
In less than a month, India will be hosting the Hockey World Championships for the first time. It is very easy to ignore the efforts made by the Indian government and raise questions over our credibility to host an event for the first time since its inception almost forty years ago (the first World Championships were held in 1971). This is truly a proud moment not only for Indian hockey but also for India as a sports nation. It has not been easy for us to achieve this success. The Indian Hockey Federation has been surrounded with controversy for many years now. The recent controversy, leading to the national players threatening to boycott India’s participation from the World Championships notwithstanding. It is time we see the glass as half full rather than it being half empty.
Agree, we are still in the process of growth and dealing with internal politics but it is high time we begin to applaud the efforts made by the federations and the Indian government who have constantly encouraged the growth of variety of sports in India and have been able to provide opportunity to host internationally relevant sport events in India. It was a proud moment for all Indian sport enthusiasts when Hyderabad hosted the World Badminton Championships in 2009. This was the first time since twenty years that a World Championship event of any Olympic sport was being hosted in India.
We are a developing nation, and with the success of IPL we have stamped our authority on the world map as a serious sports nation. The credit should again go to the Indian government without whose effort and support the smooth functioning of the tournament would have not been possible. Imagine the difficulty in arranging matches all over the country consecutively for more than a month, especially a country as large as ours and with the umpteen culture clashes that take place in the entire country. Apart from this the security concerns, pleasing all political parties have all been smoothly taken care mainly due to the co operation shown by the government and the support of influential Indian personalities who have taken a keen interest in sport.
We have not only broken records and created history but have made the world stand up and praise our efforts. Instead of concentrating on the controversies and the negatives which are attached with each sport it is time for the fans to unite and applaud the efforts of our government and sport bodies that have made it possible for India to achieve so much in the sporting world in the recent past. It is time every sport enthusiasts applauds the fact India has been given the opportunity to host such important sporting events and realize that we are truly lucky to witness such sport personalities perform live in our own country.
The Hockey World Championships in India is not far off. It is time to celebrate. It is time to live our dream. It is time to support the authorities who have made this possible. It is time to cheer for our team as loudly as possible. It is time to wave the national flag proudly and let the world know that India has arrived and is here to rock the sporting world in the years to come. Jai Hind!
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... well written .. its definately comendable that india has grown and its a huge achievement to have the world hockey championship .. its nice to see after all the controversies they have managed to do so much and have actually taken the initiative to do sumthin for the national sport .. that even includes the press.. who till now had full page articles on cricket only ... beisdes 2010 looks like a good year(touchwood) .. with even the commonwealth cumin up which should hopefully go well .. and plus the ipl ..it will hopefully be a great year for India in all fields.. !!! As a sports person i definately appreciate this first step towards progres... and i hope it jus grows from here.. n gets better... !! Well done thanx for this great article .. |
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