The great Indian Hope

In one of the plethora of TV interviews being aired as a build-up to the London Olympic Games, Mahesh Bhupathi made an interesting comment. When asked about the size of the 81-strong Indian contingent, the tennis star said: “If money could buy medals, India would have had a great chance but all I can say is that it's great to see so many athletes travelling to London to achieve excellence.”

Post IPL, the cheer for an Olympic Gold has never been so stirring, and it is not without a reason. To expect India to bag their best-ever haul at the Olympics is not asking for too much since on a sport-to-sport basis, quite a few Indian athletes rank among the world's best. India won a Gold (shooting) and two Bronze medals (wrestling and boxing) at the Beijing Games in 2008. In London, India aims to at least double that tally.

The Olympics are the ultimate stage for any athlete. A five-time boxing world champion like Mary Kom has butterflies in her stomach in her maiden Olympics; the fastest man on Earth, Jamaican Usain Bolt, is under threat from teammate and training partner Yohan Blake; and giant American swimmer Michael Phelps, who won eight gold medals at Beijing and 16 in all, cannot guarantee if he will clinch another three at London to become the most successful Olympian ever.
Sport has this propensity to make a mockery of rankings. Statistics are for the record books and only help suggest a possibility. By that yardstick and given her current world No 1 status, the 18-year-old Jharkhand archer Deepika Kumari is in pole position to win Gold. Much before the Danny Boyle-orchestrated billion-dollar opening ceremony at the Olympic Stadium in the wee hours of July 28, all eyes will be on Lord’s but not for a cricketing reason.

Cricket’s Mecca will witness one of the most fascinating battles as double junior world champion Deepika aims for bull's eye against deadly rivals from Korea and China. India have had a love-hate relationship with Lord's. It was here that Kapil’s Devils won the Prudential World Cup in 1983 and Sourav Ganguly's bravehearts clinched the NatWest title in 2002. But the 4-0 Test drubbing against England in the summer of 2011 still rankles. Can our archers write a golden chapter at one of the world's most revered venues and wipe out a cricketing agony?

This will be London's second tryst with an Olympiad. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, London hosted the 1948 Games. These were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin. India, for the first time, competed as an independent nation. India sent a larger contingent than the previous occasions. The focus was mostly on team sports. India disappointed in most events. However, India won the hockey Gold for the fourth consecutive time. Favourites India were led by Kishan Lal and Kunwar Digvijay Singh was the vice-captain.

But modern India's hockey teams can no more exude the same confidence. Having missed the action in the 2008 Beijing Games, the first time it has ever happened, India qualified for London amid much fanfare, but if recent results, which include four successive defeats in warm-up games in Europe, are any indication, India, under Aussie coach Michael Nobbs, will do well to finish among the top six. A podium finish will be a dream come true.

Interestingly enough, of the 270 London tube stations on either side of the Thames, three have been named after former Indian hockey legends: Dhyan Chand, Roop Singh and Leslie Claudius. The original stations are Watford Junction, Watford High Street and Bushy on the London Overground line.

The hockey team, led by Bharat Chetri, will still remain the centre of attraction for the strong Indian community in London. If the tickets have been all sold out in the blue-and-pink River Bank Arena, it's because hockey remains India's biggest advertisement in world sports.

Realistically, India's hopes in London revolve around individual events. Apart from the archers, shooting, boxing, wrestling and badminton should produce medals if performances go as per the form book.

There are quite a few in the Indian contingent who will make up the numbers. Most athletes, except perhaps throwers Vikas Gowda or Krishna Poonia, have little chance. The lone judoka and the weightlifters are long shots anyway.
The Olympics, after all, are not all about winning medals. The International Olympic Committee helps athletes participate, often rising above political troubles.

For example, US-based Guor Marial has won the right to compete as a stateless athlete after refusing to compete under Sudan's flag. A refugee from Sudan's civil war, Marial has won his battle to compete in the Olympic marathon as an independent runner without a country. Marial lost 28 family members to violence or disease during the civil war that left Sudan devastated and eventually led to the south breaking away last year. He felt that representing Sudan would betray their memory, but competing in the Games this way will honour them.

India, fortunately, have no such worries. Besides the Union government, independent organisations like the Olympic Gold Quest, the Mittal Champions Trust and the Tata Sports Foundation have supported almost the entire contingent by funding their training overseas. So, there can be no complaints. It is going to be a fortnight of unadulterated high drama where form, passion and conviction will go hand in hand. Remember, even tennis king Roger Federer is gunning for his first Olympic medal.