The Olympian Dream

The Olympian Dream

As the Paris Olympics rumble on, India has notched up a tally of 35 medals at the time of going to press.

The 16 sports events that India competed in at Paris 2024 include archery, athletics, badminton, boxing, equestrian, golf, hockey, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, wrestling, table-tennis, and tennis.

Hockey team has been the top performers charting up 12 medals; while our wrestling champ Vinesh Phogat was in the news for all the wrong reasons. The controversial issue – her weight gain of 100 gm that ended up disqualifying her from the game – was most unfortunate and a real downer for her personally as well as for the country.

But in sports as in life, you win some and you lose some. Sometimes it’s just luck of the draw and the configuration of one’s stars. No point crying over spilt milk once the deed is done. Best to take these drawbacks in one’s stride and look ahead to what’s next.

Neeraj Chopra with his javelin performance enthralled, as did Lakshya Sen in badminton, Mankia Batra in Table Tennis, and many others who toiled and sweated to bring home the medals, proud torch-bearers for the country.

Sports are meant to build character, and the Indian Olympics dream has been taken forward by these men and women of character.

Pullout

In sports, as in life, you win some, you lose some