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| SPORTS TRIBUNE | Saturday, February 2, 2002, Chandigarh, India |
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He still floats like a butterfly, stings like a bee
Parmar’s
sons follow in father’s footsteps Shilpi aims for medal in Asiad TEEING-OFF
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He
still floats like a butterfly, stings like a bee I suppose
relief would be the word to describe my last sustained glimpse of
Muhammad Ali. It was nearly four months ago, at a Hollywood telethon
to raise money for victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the
USA when Ali shuffled up with Will Smith, the actor who plays him in the
new Hollywood biopic, ‘Ali’. The plan was for Smith to do the talking
with Ali standing in mute support. But Smith would not stand for this
patronising parody of the man they called Louisville Lip. Minutes before
their entry he was insisting: "No, no, no, no. Ali can talk. It
will look bad for him just to be standing there." Together the two
provided the most poignant moment of an event bordering on the
saccharine. Smith stressed that "the most famous person in the
world" and "one of the greatest heroes of our time" was a
Muslim and ended his introduction with the words, "My friend and I
want you to remember that we are strongest when we stand
together." Ali spoke eloquently without notes or preparation about
Islam being a peaceful faith opposed to "killing and murder and
terrorism". A sense of relief came from the knowledge that Ali
— who turned 60 on January 17 can still make a difference and, despite
all the damage caused by too many blows to the head and the onset of
Parkinson’s syndrome, his mind is still sharp. As his closest
friend, photographer Howard Bingham, said to me after the telethon:
"...His mind is 100 per cent. It’s just his motor function and
that improves when he gets his rest. He’s always on the road and he
doesn’t exercise like he would, so I expect he could be better, but he’s
very happy and he doesn’t feel sorry for himself." Ali still
seems to personify the spontaneity, vibrancy, wit and beauty of youth.
Even now, with his plump face and somnambulant movement, it’s hard to
think of him as a 60-year-old. For so long we’ve been treated to the
enduring images of his early years — the twinkle-eyed, pre-rap rapper
chanting his doggerel about the forthcoming "eclipse of the
Sonny" and then, at 22, yelling "I must be greatest"
after fulfilling this prediction by stopping the heavyweight champion
Sonny Liston in 1964. And, of course, the angry young man who
announced to a perplexed USA: "I ain’t got no quarrel with them
Viet Cong." Now,
with the new film directed by Michael Mann, that young Ali is back.
For those who saw him in his prime, it is hard to let go of these
memories. The way he finished his career — with two sad defeats —
and the knowledge that all those unnecessary punches had played a major
role in slurring his speech and slowing his movements, pushed him to the
margins of the public consciousness in the 1980s. It was as if we
didn’t really want to see too much of him because the images brought
home the fact that his sport was responsible for this grotesque
diminution of a man who was once the epitome of speed, grace, athletic
brilliance and verbal dexterity — a man who was said to ‘float like
a butterfly, sting like a bee’. The first time I saw Ali in the
flesh was on the day of the assassination of African National Congress
leader Chris Hani in April 1993. Abut 500 of us were there to meet him
at Johannesburg airport. The mood was dark and depressed: we were all
reeling from the shock of Hani’s death. At first it seemed beyond
Ali’s tenuous grasp to lift this mood. He was exhausted and his eyes
looked dead, and even when he muttered a few religious phrases, I
suspected he was running on empty. Then Ali whispered: "Let me take on one of your
boxers now." South African lightweight Dingaan Thobela seized the
moment, hoping to present his hero with a rose, but Ali had different
ideas. He leapt to his feet with a knowing smile, eyes bright and alert
again and began pumping out rapid-fire combinations, the punches
stopping just short of Thobela’s astonished face. The lightweight
fired back and the beaming heavyweight blocked in mid-air and, for that
moment, the pall of despair lifted. This was about the time Ali began
his revival as a public figure. He has emerged as an icon on a scale
that would have been difficult to conceive of 10 years ago, supported by
a slew of best-selling biographies, the Oscar-winning ‘When We Were
Kings’ documentary about his 1974 victory against George Foreman in
Zaire, the pathos of his Olympic torch-lighting role in Atlanta in 1996,
and now ‘Ali’. Yet as a boxer and a man, Ali was far from
flawless. Ali was without question one of the finest heavyweights of
all time, but certainly not the best ever. Despite all his speed,
reflexes, powers of anticipation, his solid chin, courage and his
wonderful capacity for invention and surprise, he had many flaws. He
was an arm puncher who never learnt to put his body behind his shots; he
was a headhunter who ignored the body; he had trouble with unorthodox
pressure fighters. Outside the ring too he was a long way from being a
role model. He once slapped his first wife Sonja around as well as his
father and one of his chief assistants, Bundini Brown. He was cruel —
way beyond the call of duty — to several opponents and seemed to take
pleasure in hurting some of them inside the ring and humiliating them
outside. As a religious figure he fell under the spell of Elijah
Mohammed of the Nation of Islam, seconding all his beliefs on all
matters — from racial purity to divine spaceships circling Earth. Later,
the extent of his political naivete became apparent when be backed
rightwing Republicans because they seemed nice to him or embracing
dictators like Zaire’s Mobutu Sese Seko and Philippines’ Ferdinand
Marcos. And yet look at what he achieved: this functionally
illiterate working-class lad became one of the most potent symbols of
black pride in America, as well as a symbol of strength, resistance,
principle and courage for people across the world by seizing control of
his destiny and defying the white establishment. He became the world’s
first global sports star and for a while the world’s best-known
person. And here Ali is again, another re-invention — still
articulate in a far quieter way, preaching peace, and playing a
significant role in defusing the xenophobia unleashed after September
11. Remarkably, at 60, he’s bigger than he has been at any time in
almost a quarter century. The generation born after his final defeat in
1980 will also have cause to claim Ali as their own. Gemini News
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Parmar’s
sons follow in father’s footsteps ‘Like father like son’ is an old adage and none could justify it more than the Parmar brothers, Jaswant and Mohan Pal, sons of former international Gurcharan Singh Parmar, whose saga of success is a source of inspiration for budding footballers. With football in their blood and their father GSParmar having shown the way, both the brothers followed in their father’s footsteps. Today, Jaswant is a key member of the JCT Phagwara football team, currently playing in the sixth National Football League. Younger brother Mohan Pal, a student at Guru Nanak College, Phagwara, was captain of the Punjab team who won the Junior National Football Championship for the Dr BCRoy Trophy, beating Goa 1-0 in the final at Jodhpur on January 4. Jaswant, who was born on October 16, 1979, studied at Government Senior Secondary School, Mahilpur, up to plus one. Later he joined DAV College, Hoshiarpur, and represented Panjab University, who won the North Zone All-India Inter-University Football Championship in 1997. He played as half back. In 1994, Jaswant was a member of the Indian under-16 team which toured Israel. In 1997, he was selected in the Indian schools under-19 team who played in Singapore and Brunei. In 1999, Jaswant was picked in the Indian under-21 team which participated in the Rajiv Gandhi Gold Cup in Goa. For the past few years, he has been representing JCT Phagwara in the National Football League and is a source of strength for his side. Brazil’s Rivaldo is his role model, and he seldom misses seeing his hero in action in international matches on television. The senior Parmar, who was the vice-captain of India during the 1982 Asian Games, today hardly misses an opportunity to see his sons in action. Cool and modest, he quietly points out the drawbacks after watching keen tussles, particularly those involving his former club in the national league. The Parmar family belongs to the nursery of Punjab football, Hoshiarpur. Developing a liking for the game was but natural for GSParmar, now 48 and an employee of JCT, whom he took to the pinnacle of glory many years back. After early schooling at Kapurthala, GS Parmar as a college student at Narur Panchatta represented Guru Nanak Dev University. In 1973, he joined JCT Mills and from 1975 to 1982, he remained its captain. In the eighties, Parmar figured prominently in all major national and international meets. In the pre-Olympic tournament at Singapore in 1980, Parmar’s role in the defence was outstanding although India lost 0-1 to China in the quarterfinals. In 1981, Parmar played for India in the Merdeka Cup in Kuala Lumpur. The same year he represented India in the King’s Cup at Bangkok and the President’s Cup in Korea. He also played four Test matches against a visiting USSR team. For the 1982 Asian Games, GS Parmar was named vice-captain. Parmar also played a key role for JCT in the Durand Cup from 1974 to 1978 when his team reached the final but the most satisfying moment came in 1983 when he played a stellar role in JCT’s historic 2-1 win over Mohun Bagan in the Durand Cup final at New Delhi. In 1976, Parmar was declared the best player in the Vittal Trophy, as also in the Sait Nagjee Trophy on several occasions. "It was basically my performance which encouraged my sons to follow in my footsteps, "said GS Parmar during a recent meeting. "Jaswant showed interest rather early and I hope he keeps improving," he said while echoing the same feelings for his younger son, Mohan Pal, who prior to participating in the junior nationals, attended India junior camps at Kolkata and Patiala. Undoubtedly, Jaswant is one player whom every opposition finds difficult to tackle. He guards the ball superbly and can seldom be dispossessed. His accurate and curving long rangers have spelt doom for many outfits. Mohan Pal, likewise, is a promising defender who lends strength to the midfield. Maybe in the coming years, one will hear more about the junior Parmars.
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Shilpi aims for medal in Asiad Shilpi Singh, an international pistol shooter from Haryana, has shown good performance consistently despite the fact that no renowned air pistol coach from abroad could be made available on a regular basis by the National Rifle Association of India to train her. Shilpi, who secured silver medal in the recently held National Games in 10 metre section was of the view that though foreign exposure was being given by the NRAI the number of international tournaments the Indian shooters take part was still very less compared to other shooters in the world. She took to shooting at the age of 14 when her father, a former Bihar shooter encouraged her. The 22-year-old shooter practises at Tughlakabad Range, Delhi for more than five hours a day. Shilpi said that was yoga which she does for nearly one hour daily had made her strong mentally and more confident. Shilpi praised the air pistol coach Tibor Gonezol whose presence for a short while in India was very helpful for the shooters. She said shooting was gaining momentum in India and the recent addition of shooting in the All-India inter university calendar was a good step. She was happy that the government has decided to give the sport a specific attention. She praised the Phillaur range as well as Mohali shooting range. Shilpi Singh is employed in Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) as Sub-Inspector. Shilpi has represented India thrice in the World Cup in air pistol (10 metre) and sports pistol (25 metre) event. She also took part in Commonwealth Games in 1998 at Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) and also in two Commonwealth shooting championship in 1997 and 1999 held at Malaysia and New Zealand where she was able to secure silver and bronze medals respectively. Her nearest goal was to win medal in Asian Games-2002.
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TEEING-OFF Almost all the leading stars in the Asian PGA Tour will be seen in action in the Hero Honda Masters at the DLF Golf and Country Club (Gurgaon) from February 14 to 17. The tournament, which has grown in stature and status during the past five years, carries prize money of $ 300,000. The pro-am is scheduled for February 13. As the prize money has been substantially increased, many foreign stars have consented to take part in the competition which is expected to be livelier this time than the previous editions. The DLF course now has many added facilities and amenities and participants are looking forward to display their prowess. It will be worthwhile seeing whether the title stays at home or is won by a foreigner. The Tour Talk, the official monthly newsletter of the Hero Honda Golf Tour, has further bridged the gap between superstars and officials, according to the President of the Professional Golfers Association of India (PGAI), Mr Pawan Kant Munjal. The newsletter, produced by Tiger Sports Marketing, provides all the relevant information pertaining to the tour, which has so far staged 16 events and five more will be held before the conclusion of the season in March, 2002. DGC succumbs to pressure The Delhi Golf Club (DGC), in its extraordinary general meeting, has agreed to provide 125 Central Government officials membership in addition to 50 who are already members. They will be known as "tenure" members, who will be required to pay only the monthly subscription. The official will stay as member until he is posted here. When he is transferred, his membership will be given to another "tenure" member. If the DGC, a premier golfing institution in the country, continues to succumb to the pressure or influence of the IAS lobby, soon the club will become the hub for the government officials. Following the grant of membership to government officials, the waiting period for the genuine lovers of golf, waiting patiently for membership, will be increased.
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