More avenues needed to nurture India’s sporting spirit

File Photo/PTI

Even as we exult with India passing the 70-medal mark which we won in the last Asian Games, and hopefully march towards a 90-plus medal haul, the Hangzhou (China) event must give us much to mull about.

Amidst proclamations about India becoming a sporting power or coming of age, the debate about when we will see complete dominance of the medal tally like China, there are several things that we must get right.

We must be doing something right to be able to improve in leaps and bounds. Some of our athletes themselves claim they are not too happy with bronze and will strive for better. This points to burning ambition and a real desire for sporting success.

Yet, with facilities and rewards for our athletes, we still need to make the base much stronger. In cities and especially in Mumbai, we need to keep the few grounds we have encroachment free for young people to be able to play.

This means no programmes and processions of any kind in maidans so that kids have a chance to be outdoors, parents have somewhere to take them. Make this ground level infra as accessible as possible, so that more people have the opportunity to at least feed their appetite for games and sport. Under flyovers, transforming little used corners, empty buildings, imagination and creativity can come alive here and we can create courts, gym equipment, tracks even if small as a teaser or initiator into sport.

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At school level showers and rest rooms on grounds are a necessity. First aid is a must at the most basic practice sites and tourneys. Even something as elementary as Physical Training (PT) in schools should be taken seriously. Put down deep roots see that the soil below is especially strong to nurture this and then we can have a vast sporting pool of talent which we take to the next level, and eventually take on the world in multi-sport events.