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| SPORTS TRIBUNE | Sunday, October 27, 2002, Chandigarh, India |
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The ugly head shows up again
Nurturing talent at the grassroots Fleet-footed girl of Indian hockey
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The ugly head shows up again
For a country desperately in need of heroes, the
athletics contingent provided quite a few in the Busan Asian Games. In
fact but for athletics India would have had very little to show for the
very large number of sportspersons officials who travelled all the way
to South Korea. Medals are what count with the Indians and that is what
the athletes delivered. Two of the performers, Neelam J.Singh in discus
and Sunita Rani in the 1,500 metres went one step further. They set new
records. These two in fact were the real stars. Unfortunately for India
of the two only one remained of star value. The other, track star Sunita
Rani, a success on the track, fell out of favour in the laboratory,
testing positive to a banned drug. Since then the sports authorities
have been at pains to explain away the misfortune and seeking escape
routes, even to the extent of denying that the medals won by Sunita have
been taken back. That exercise has now been put paid with the Olympic
Council of Asia officially demanding the return of the medals — gold
and silver — won by Sunita. A one-man inquiry commission has been set
up ascertain the extent of involvement. All very proper. Irrespective
of the outcome of the commission one thing must be settled for once and
all. The athlete concerned should not be penalised. Sunita Rani is one
of the top women athletes of the country and irrespective of the charges
against her, has the ability to break the Asian mark. There should be no
questions on the score. One must reassert the fact that she being an
experienced hand in international competition would not take recourse to
any artificial inducement. Her record of performances in earlier
competitions is proof enough. And more importantly it is not fair to
question her honesty. One should accept her statement that she has not
taken any drug knowingly without any reservations. Having made this
point very clear we must address the inescapable fact that she has
tested positive and that she was given some tablet during the course of
her stay in Busan. One report did mention about a tablet given by her
coach to get over some menstrual trouble. Fair enough. No one should
blame the coach. He did what he thought was the right thing. Whatever
was done was done in good faith but maybe in ignorance. That is no
excuse and someone has to take the blame. Frankly, right or wrong, the
guilty party, if there is any such thing Indian sport, is the Amateur
Athletics Federation of India. The federation has been seized of the
matter of drug abuse among athletes for quite some time now. In fact it
has even refused to recognise certain performances because of suspicion
of unfair means employed. But at the same time it has also come under
scrutiny because of the huge difference in performances of athletes
while on home conditions and those outside. And it cannot deny that
Indian athletes have been on the prohibited list of International
Amateur Athletics Federation which carried out random tests in the 90s.
It should have learnt lessons then and more when Seema Antil was
stripped off her gold medal while innocently taking curative measures
for a cold. Some warning should have been issued. But no such thing
appears to have been done. What exactly could it have done to meet the
increasing drug menace? For a long time now both the athletics and
weightlifting bodies have been threatened by the drug menace. By now
some sort of preventive measures should have been taken. One of them was
to get a list of all the banned and prohibited drugs with their generic
names from the International Olympic Committee and circulate it among
the various federations, sports medicine doctors, and coaches. The
coaches and doctors in turn should have been made responsible for
guiding the competitors. If the federation had done that then there
would be no chance for any coach to give his athlete tablets containing
banned drugs. Obviously and despite the constant threat of drugs, the
federations have been very lax. If it was not possible to check the
drug menace than the other possible method was to find out the means of
masking the drug intake. Some countries, it is believed, have done
so. Whatever the eventual solution the immediate need is to ensure that
Sunita Rani should not be penalised. If she is to face a ban from taking
part in the international circuit for two years the AAFI should at least
appeal to the IAAF to allow her to continue taking part in the domestic
circuit meets. Given Sunita Rani’s excellent record and her now
reported misdemeanour the IAAF may not have too many objections to this
request. |
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Punjab Police and Indian hockey For the past few years, Punjab Police have dominated
the national hockey scene. Olympians Pargat Singh and Jagdev Singh
played stellar roles some years back. Pargat, in fact happens to be the
only Indian to have led India twice — first at the Barcelona Olympics
in 1992 and then at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. More recently, left
half Ramandeep Singh led India in the Sydney Olympics. Going back by a
few years, the late Surjit Singh captained India up to 1982 after which
Surinder Singh Sodhi, now serving as an SSP, took over during the 1982
Asian Games. More recently, Olympian Baljit Singh Dhillon led India in
the Kuala Lumpur World Cup. However, the domination of Punjab Police at
the recently concluded Busan Asian Games has perhaps been the most
pronounced. With as many as five Punjab Police players donning national
colours, the Indian team drew nearly half its strength from Punjab
Police. And had some promising stars like Baljit Dhillon, who captained
India in the Kuala Lumpur World Cup, not been dropped on fitness
grounds, the number would have swelled further. Justifying their
selection, the Punjab cops played a major role in India's silver-medal
victory at Busan. Going by statistics, India scored 16 goals in five
matches out of which players from Punjab Police alone accounted for 12
goals. Junior World Cup hero Gagan Ajit Singh and promising full back
Jugraj Singh scored four goals each. Daljit Singh Dhillon, who also
played in the World Cup earlier this year, scored three while
Kanwalpreet scored one. The remaining four goals came through the
veteran Dhanraj Pillay( three) and Deepak Thakur(one). India opened
their campaign with a 5-1 win over Hong Kong. Gagan Ajit and Jugraj
scored two goals each while Kamalpreet scored one. In the second match,
the Indians beat Japan 3-0 with goals from Deepak Thakur, Dhanraj Pillay
and Daljit Dhillon. In the third and last league tie, India held South
Korea to a 1-1 draw with Daljit Dhillon scoring the equaliser in the
second half. The high-voltage semifinal against Pakistan once again
weighed in India's favour as they scored a hard-fought 4-3 win over the
arch rivals thanks to a fine brace by Dhanraj Pillay. The other goals
came from Daljit Dhillon and Gagan Ajit Singh. Luck deserted the Indians
in the final against South Korea although the gallant fightback by India
will be long remembered. Down 0-3 at one stage, India fought back to
make it 3-3 before conceding a goal in the dying minutes. The Indian
scorers were Jugraj Singh(two) and Gagan Ajit Singh. However, as
national coach Rajinder Singh said, the midfield lacked maturity. This
is perhaps one of the reasons for India conceding as many as nine goals,
the second highest number in the history of the Asian Games. Better
goalkeeping and tight defence could have kept the number low. After all,
India have an enviable record of conceding just one goal in 1958 and
1970. In a nutshell, it was an encouraging showing from the youngsters
coached by Rajinder Singh and NSSodhi. Better results can be expected
from the bunch in the near future. And Punjab Police players are
expected to be in the vanguard as before. |
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Nurturing
talent at the grassroots
Olympian Pargat Singh and his Hockey Promotion
Institute have taken upon themselves the arduous job, which otherwise
the Punjab Hockey Association (PHA) should be doing, of nurturing talent
at the grassroot level . It organised the 3rd NRI Punjab Champions
Hockey league in three different age groups — under-14, under 19 and
under-19 academies — at Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium at Jalandhar from
September 16 to October 7. He was helped in this tough venture by a
group of NRIs who extended not only financial and moral support but have
also pledged to make the event an annual affair. Those supporting this
appreciable project are Mr Baldev Singh Bajwa, Mr Bhupinder Singh, Mr
Tarsem Singh, Mr Sukhdev Singh, Ms Satinder Kaur, Mr Parminder Bains, Mr
Sarabjit Singh Sangha, Mr Bishan Dass (all from Germany), Mr Jasbir
Johal, Mr Jaswinder Sahota, Mr Ravinder Singh Powar (all from England),
Mr Jaswinder Singh Kukku (Italy), Mr Bharpur Singh and Mr Amarjit Singh
Dhillon (USA). In the under 19 boys group, a total of 10 top schools
participated. Mr Rajdeep Singh Gill, ADGP, PAP Jalandhar, inaugurated
the tournament which was ultimately won by Baba Farid Public School,
Faridkot, beating Government Senior Secondary School, Dhudike,
2-1. The teams wre divided into two pools. A total 24 matches were
played on league-cum-knock out basis and 80 goals were scored. In the
semi-finals GSS School, Dhudike, beat MGN SS School, Jalandhar Cantt,
3-0 and Baba Farid Public School edged out PAP Government SS School,
Jalandhar, 1-0. The winners were given prizes Mr S.C. Gupta,
Commissioner, Income Tax, Jalandhar. Four best players declared by the
Organising Committee were Rajpal Singh (best goalkeeper from PAP
School), Sandeep Singh (best full back from Faridkot), Pardeep Kumar
(best half back from MGN School) and Gurminder Singh (best forward from
Dhudike). The under-14 boys (academies) attracted top eight teams of
different academies of Punjab. The teams were divided into two pools. In
this group a total of 16 matches were played on league-cum- knockout
basis and a total of 54 goals were scored . Surjit Hockey Academy won
the title by beating Baba Farid Academy, Faridkot, 3-0. In the
semifinals Baba Farid Academy beat Kila Raipur Academy 3-0, Surjit
Academy beat PAP Academy, Jalandhar, 6-0. Mr S.K. Sharma, I.G. Zonal,
Jalandhar, gave away the prizes. In this group four out standing players
were best goalkeeper — Rashpal Singh (Kila Raipur); Best Full back —
Jaspal Singh (Faridkot); best half back —Vakil of PAP Academy and best
forward — Gagandeep Singh of Surjit Academy. In the under-19
academies’ category eight teams participated. The teams were divided
into two pools. In this group 18 matches were played and a total of 62
goals were scored. In the final, Surjit Hockey Academy edged out Escorts
Academy, Jalandhar, 4-1 to clinch the title. In semifinals Escorts
Academy beat Shivalik Academy, Chandigarh, by a solitary goal whereas
Surjit Academy surpassed Border Hawks, Amritsar, 3-0. The prizes to the
winners were given by Mr Chander Shekhar,Inspector General Of Police.
The four out standing players were: best goalkeeper — Gurpreet Singh
of Surjit Academy; best half back — Rajmendar Singh also from Surjit
Academy; best full back — Baljinder Singh; and Best forward — Gurbaj
Singh. The Hockey Promotion Institute provided free playing kit to all
the participating teams. |
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Fleet-footed girl of Indian hockey Mamta Kharb, the Indian hockey’s latest golden girl, looks unassuming in her wedge-cut hairstyle and shy smile. Only those who face her know how dangerous she can be — with a hockey stick. Inside-left Mamta showed those instincts in ample measure when she slammed two goals against England, including the clincher, to fetch for India at Manchester its maiden hockey gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. Her first goal in the 21st minute of the first half gave India the lead. And her second strike, which came at the end of first half of the extra time, ensured the gold medal. “When we were awarded the corner, coach Bhangu asked us to go all out,” she recalled. “We knew there little time left, I could see the big clock on the ground.” Mamta enjoys scoring goals. She told IANS: “I have always played up front. The coaches who have guided me in my early years felt that since I had good speed, I would be better off playing as a forward.” One of her strengths is her never-say-die spirit. Where does she get it? “When I am in a tough situation, I remember my parents, which gives me strength,” she said. “Whatever I am today is due to the blessings of my parents, especially my father who is a teacher.” When Mamta returned with the Indian team to New Delhi her elated parents were at the airport to receive their star daughter. “They told me that they watched the matches live on television, and when we were trailing 0-3 against South Africa in the quarterfinal, both of them were praying for India to win,” Mamta said. India went on to win the match 4-3 after a remarkable fightback, though Mamta did not score any goal. She, however, more than made up by scoring the winner in a tough semifinal against New Zealand. With India down to 10 women, a persistent Mamta scored off a penalty corner rebound with only eight minutes left in the game. And it was history in the finals, as the girl from Rohtak in Haryana staged her golden act. One of the seven brothers and sisters, Mamta is the star of the family — and now of the nation. Mamta gives credit to Jaswinder Singh Bhangu, coach at the Sports Authority of India’s Chandigarh centre, where she polished her game between 1996 and 1999. Her performance during this period landed her a job with the Railways in 1999 and she was posted at Mumbai. She practises with the Railways team, which is practically the Indian national team. Some of the highlights of Mamta’s career are the 11 goals she scored at the 50th Senior National Championship at Jabalpur last year, and the ‘best player of the tournament’ award she won for scoring eight goals at the first under-18 Asia Cup at Hong Kong in November 2000. Surprisingly, Mamta does not have any idol or mentor, neither has she tried to copy the game of any particular player. “I just admire a few players, like my team mates Pritam Rani Siwach and Sita Gussain and former player Rajbir Kaur,” she said. As of now her main ambition is to become a graduate. “If I complete my graduation, I will gain a lot, and it will also help in my promotion,” said Mamta, a first year student of Bachelor of Arts.
IANS
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‘Thorough testing for Olympics’ The Indian contingent for the 2004 Athens Olympics will undergo thorough dope tests before departure, Union Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs Pon Radhakrishnan said in Udhagamandalam on Friday. Talking to reporters, the minister said he did not know what happened in Busan but distance runner Sunita Rani, who was stripped of her gold and bronze medals after testing positive for nandrolone, was “absolutely free from anything before leaving for the Games.”
PTI
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Indians faltered in crunch situations Nothing succeeds like success. A moderately improved performance by
the Indian contingent at Busan should not make us overlook innumerable
shortcomings. Our performance could have been far more creditable, as
a realistic assessment amply reveals that as many as 20 gold were well
within our reach. But as usual, we could not stand up to the fierce
competition and faltered in crunch situations. The highly dismal
performance by our much eulogised marksmen, archers, grapples and
pugilists amply shows that we still have miles to go before we can
compete with the Chinese, Koreans or Japanese. Our paddlers and
shuttlers barring some glimpses from Gopichand, stand nowhere near
their enviable standards. In other disciplines like basketball,
swimming, fencing, judo, taekwondo, yachting and baseball, the country
cannot even dream of participating. Given the geographic area and
population, India should be among the top three nations. But time and
again, our failures are due to poor infrastructural facilities,
nepotism, favouritism and above all, lack of adequate incentives. The
hockey team’s defeat at the hands of Koreans in the final should not
be considered a jolt. The soccer and volleyball teams also fared
well. SOM KIRTI,
II
GARGI AGGARWAL,
III
HARSUKH
MANJEET,
Indian hockey
JATINDER SHARMA,
Windies’
defeat
VIPUL KANSAL |
