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Inderjeet — hopes for Athens berth Attitude is big plus for Digvijay Irish tourist who became Olympic champ Steffi and Andre: Olympic champions. IN THE NEWS |
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Football’s new pin-up man He has always been totally dedicated to the game, first as a player and now as a coach. Subash Bhowmick, a name to reckon with in Indian football. A fine striker, his bulldozing movements were often a blur for the rivals. He was one of the most formidable forwards in the country. Fans remember him from the days he wore East Bengal colours, playing in the DCM or the Durand tournaments in Delhi. Often the target of the non-Bengal club supporters, Bhowmick was picked upon as he was the biggest threat to their teams. Controlling the pace of East Bengal movements up the field, he often turned the tide in his team's favour. He was as popular and effective when he wore national colours. Today Bhowmick coaches East Bengal across new frontiers, the team he once led to victories. The team he has laboured with for such a long time has now retained the most coveted title of them all, the National Football League. The feat was accomplished with two matches in hand. Bhowmick, is out to redefine Indian football, trying to take it to the standards it once had. He played at a time when Indian football was a force to reckon with in Asia. He lays special emphasis on fitness, an aspect not given much thought in earlier days. Trainer Kevin Jackson supervises the condition of the players. He has even asked the boys to switch to pasta for lunch instead of rice. That may be asking a lot from the players yet they swear by him. He has fought the establishment for them, criticising the mighty Indian Football Association and consequently fighting a two-year ban imposed on him. He demanded proper playing conditions for the players, something no coach had done before. Subash Bhowmick is a man inspired when it comes to the game he loves. Just look at his record in the two seasons he has worked with East Bengal. Nine trophies, nine triumphs. What more can one ask of a coach? Subash Bhowmick however has a long way to go though. There are other trophies to be won, other victories to be achieved, more importantly, a major battle against the establishment to be won. He is fighting the IFA to remove the ban imposed for trivial reasons. The IFA and the AIFF must accept criticism if it comes from players and coaches of the standing of Subash Bhowmick and PK Bannerjee. Subash Bhowmick has set a great example. He deserves all praise for the success of his club, a combination which he says is better than the national team. |
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Inderjeet — hopes for Athens berth Wiry, 5 ft 10 inches tall, tremendously fit and with a big heart, Inderjeet Singh Chadha has always dreamt big. The 23-year-old from Mohali belongs to that rare genre of players who aim to bring romance back into the game, a trait, which, not till long ago, was synonymous with Indian hockey. Inderjeet took to hockey while studying at SGGS School, Sector 35. “I was in the Punjab school team in 1997. In that tournament I felt that I played better than many. So, I set down to learn the basics of the game.” Subsequently he joined the Sector 42 Hockey Academy, where he still goes for practice when he is in town. Currently touring Japan with the 18-member ‘experimental’ Indian side for the four-nation tournament, Inderjeet’s recent performances have enhanced his chances of getting a call for the Athens-bound team. He has shown an ability to play both as a striker and mid-fielder as he did during the tournaments in Australia last month. Inderjeet's hero is the maverick Dhanraj Pillay. “I hope he will play in the Olympics. There is something wrong between the IHF and him but I am not really in a position to comment on that,” he admits candidly. A young Inderjeet extended his learning playing alongside his idol Dhanraj Pillay and experienced battle horses like Mukesh Kumar and Dilip Tirkey. “I played in the senior India team before playing at the junior level on a regular basis.” That early exposure proved beneficial during the junior World Cup in Australia in 2001. Inderjeet scored the crucial goal against Germany in the semifinal, which India won 3-2. “It was a difficult tournament but we remained focussed and played as a team. It is the highest point in my career till now. But nothing can be better than winning the Olympic.” Inderjeet was also a member of the team that got the better of arch-rivals Pakistan in the Prime Minister’s Gold Cup in Dhaka in 2000.” ‘Playing as a team’ seems to be the key word for India now. The current Indian team has many players from that junior World Cup squad. Devesh Chauhan, Kanwalpreet Singh, Jugraj Singh, Bimal Lakra, Viren Rasquinha, Gagan Ajit Singh, Inderjeet Singh, Arjun Halappa, Tejbir Singh, Prabhjot Singh, Deepak Thakur, Ignatius Tirkey and Vikram Pillay were all part of that squad. “Good understanding between players is the key to success in any team game, so playing together since our junior days did help a lot.” The eight-time Olympic champions have a young team to prove mettle in this year’s Olympics. If the squad returns triumphant, this gutsy player from Mohali will definitely be one of the happiest persons, whether he plays in the final or not. |
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Attitude is big plus for Digvijay
Stiffer the situation, more resolute young Digvijay becomes. With a never say die attitude, he possesses nerves of steel. Golf is in his mind. This attitude helped him win the gruelling SRF All-India Match-Play Championship at the Delhi golf Club (DGC) course recently. Digvijay has all the attributes for breaking into the big league. Unlike several others, he considers every hole a fresh opportunity to make amends and forge ahead. Digvijay's two-up win over Jamman was a bright spot on the final 36-hole contest but the rigorous tournament belonged to caddy-pros. Seven of the eight quarter-finalists in the fray were from that class, showing that they could withstand scorching heat and varying course conditions better than amateur-turned-pros. The legendary 90 plus Bharat Ram, who played a round of 18 on the pro-am day, during the prize distribution, batted for the caddy-pros. A determined effort should be made to improve their lot as they were the future hope of the country, he said. There is, perhaps, no other individual who understands this intricate game better than him. Digvijay was sporting enough to say that it was a revelation for him to watch Jumman in action. "I was just lucky that I prevailed upon him on the day he was at his dazzling best. Had Jumman won it — he was so near it — it would have been his maiden major triumph in Indian professional circuit. Maiden win Daniel Chopra bagged his maiden title in a grand style posting a final round of six-under 66 to win the $ 500,000 First Tee Arkansas Classic, a major event in the Nationwide Tour, which is subsidiary to the US PGA Tour. Daniel had honed his early golf at Delhi before migrating to Sweden. With this maiden win, Daniel is firmly entrenched on the circuit after many hiccups. Two years ago, he was passing through a critical phase. His golf was on the decline and he was facing financial problems.His friends, including Chiranjeev Milkha Singh, saw him through. Great honour Tanya Wadhwa, a golf protege studying at the David Ledbetter Academy in Florida, had a rare honour of meeting Tiger Woods, his mother and finance when she was invited to watch the players tournament. Outstanding sub-junior player, Tanya also met Arjun Atwal and Daniel Chopra recently. Fully focussed , she is looking forward to playing against Simi Mehra, an Indian professional in the USA. |
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Irish tourist who became Olympic champ The 19th century was drawing to a close with Britain’s Queen Victoria still ruling her empire 59 years after coming to the throne. And in the heart of England’s academia, at Oxford’s Christ’s College, studious Irishman John Boland was engrossed in his books. Boland was fascinated by Greek culture and history and it was inevitable that Pierre de Coubertin’s plan to revive the ancient Olympic ideal would grasp his imagination. So it proved when he invited Greek friend Thrasyvoalos Manaos to speak at the Oxford union on the subject of the rebirth of the games. Manaos accepted and Boland, enthused by his friend’s speech, determined to travel to the Greek capital during his Easter holidays to witness the milestone event. Boland set out as a tourist, never guessing that by the time he returned to British shores he would have been crowned one of the first, and most unlikely, Olympic champions, taking his place in what would become a pantheon of sporting greats. By the time Boland arrived in Athens, Manaos had been appointed secretary of the first organising committee and had entered his friend in the tennis competition. That the Irishman had no equipment, clothing or footwear for sporting pursuits proved no obstacle. Wearing leather-soled shoes with a heel and wielding a borrowed racquet, he cut down all opposition before overcoming Egyptian Dionysios Kasdaglis in the final. The sport had been codified just 22 years earlier and Boland’s unplanned and pioneering triumph paved the way for generations of glittering tennis talent to take to the Olympic stage. There have been many ups and downs since Boland’s victory 108 years ago — not least an exile of 64 years between 1924 and 1988 — but as the sporting world gears up for the 2004 games, and a return to Athens in August, tennis is once more firmly entrenched in the fabric of the Olympic movement. By the time women were invited to take part in 1900, Charlotte 'Chattie' Cooper had already won three of her five Wimbledon titles. She returned from Paris as the first woman champion of the modern games. Tennis was reinstated at the Seoul games in 1988, a momentous occasion highlighted by Steffi Graf’s capture of the women’s singles gold medal. Her defeat of Gabriela Sabatini handed the German the ‘Golden Grand Slam’ as she had won each of the four Grand Slam titles as well that year. In modern times, Graf has been joined by a roll call of big names, including her husband and 1996 champion Andre Agassi The Williams sisters, Venus and Serena, have sparkled in the Olympic arena, as have Boris Becker and Michael Stich. The leading players in the men’s and women’s games, Roger Federer and Justine Henin-Hardenne, have already stated their intention to go for gold. Whoever ends up on the winners’ podium this time round, it is a fair bet that it will not be a tourist filling in at the last minute. —
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IN THE NEWS Martina Navratilova, the age-defying grand old dame of tennis will return to top-flight singles again at the age of 47. She will not only grace the Roland Garros courts playing doubles and mixed doubles but singles as well. When she expressed a desire to return to singles play in Grand Slams, French Open officials obliged the former champion with a wildcard. She last won the title at the Roland Garros clay 20 years ago in 1984 while she last played a singles match at the tournament in 1994. Navratilova’s return has decidedly made the field more interesting as she will be competing against many players less than half her age. Serena Williams has already termed her return amazing. Most players against whom Navratilova will play were not even born when she won her first title. Players of her generation have even quit the senior circuit. Martina Hingis, who was named after Navratilova, has long since been forgotten while the true champion is still winning Grand Slam titles, albeit in mixed doubles. Age may have made Navratilova a step or two slower, but she still retains the touch and is as competitive as ever. It is this spirit which prompted her to return to singles as she says it will help improve her doubles play. Navratilova may find it difficult to get past top players but the spirit which made her test herself in singles, doubles as well as mixed doubles at one of the most gruelling Grand Slams is truly amazing. The French Open starts on May 24. |
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Hockey: No time for experiments I was surprised to know that the boys who won the prestigious Asia Cup after three decades were shown the door by the IHF. Dropping Dhanraj Pillay and Dhillon means we do not want playmakers who have potential and stamina. The mere presence of Dhanraj and Dhillon means a lot and the opponents keep 2-3 players to mark them. I do not see any logic in dropping them. Remember the Cameroon player Roger Milla who played in the World Cup at the age of 42? With the rolling substitution rule in force, whom is the IHF trying to befool? Dr T.S. Randhawa,
Received on e-mail II There is no time for experimentation in Indian hockey with less than 100 days to go for the Olympics at Athens. I agree with the views expressed by Bishen Bedi, Pargat Singh, Zafar Iqbal and Ashok Kumar. I am in favour of inclusion of senior players like Dhanraj Pillay and Baljit Singh Dhillon. Dr Daljit Singh,
Winnipeg III The exclusion of key hockey players from the list of probables for the Olympics came as a big shock for lovers of the game in the country. One fails to understand why stalwarts like Dhanraj Pillay had been kept out. When chances of regaining hockey glory appeared to be bright, exclusion of top players was a great setback. Ujagar Singh,
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Aritra Mukhopadhyay
Ossian Shine
Martina
Navratilova, the age-defying grand old dame of tennis will return to top-flight singles again at the age of 47. She will not only grace the Roland Garros courts playing doubles and mixed doubles but singles as well.
When she expressed a desire to return to singles play in Grand Slams, French Open officials obliged the former champion with a wildcard. 
Puccini’s opera 'La Boheme' premiered to a lukewarm Turin reception; Russia’s last Tsar Nicholas II was crowned in Moscow, while in the USA 1896 saw Henry Ford put the finishing touches to his first automobile, the gasoline-powered quadricycle.