Sports Becomes A New Normal

Sudhir Saxena, 30, a kick-boxing champion, still finds it hard to be in the limelight, as this sport was only recognised a year back by the Ministry of Youth Affairs. “The recognition has increased the scope of the sports at national and international level. Now, it is not difficult to find a sponsor as it used to be,” says Saxena.

In 2013, Saxena called it quits due to family pressure and started a job in the banking sector for livelihood. At that time, the game was not recognised by the government, so no job or any such incentives were available for such players.

However, he was destined to be back in the game. In 2016, he played one championship and nailed it. In 2017, he went to Asian Championship and waved the Indian flag in the stadium. Since then, he has never looked back. He has bagged over 12 national medals and more than 40 state-level medals.

He believes that sports should not be played as an extra curricula activity, it should be adopted as a serious pursuit.

For that to happen, the financial concerns of a sportsperson need to be taken care of. After all, sport is an expensive pursuit, and you need equipment, the right nourishment and the right trainer. And you need to be travelling for tournaments. A family’s energy and time is also entailed – waking up in the wee hours, dropping off the ward to the training venue, preparing right meals. In many cases, a parent’s career also taking a backseat.

Game Changer

To fulfil players’ requirement, the government has initiated many policies that make it easier for sportspersons. For example, in kick boxing, a bronze medal winner gets Rs 8,00,000 per annum, and for a silver medal he takes home Rs 15,00,000. Also, each tournament pays them a smart remuneration.

The real game changer is the Khelo India programme, that has been introduced to promote sports culture in India at the grass-root level by building a strong framework for all sports played in our country and establish India as a great sporting nation.

Talented players identified in priority sports disciplines at various levels by the High-Powered Committee will be provided annual financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh per annum for eight years.

Khelo India School Games, which are a part of the Khelo India programme, were first held in January-February, 2018 in New Delhi. Under-17 athletes were invited to participate across 16 disciplines: Archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, boxing, football, gymnastics, hockey, judo, kabaddi, kho-kho, shooting, swimming, volleyball, weightlifting, and wrestling.

To enhance support to Indian players, in February 2020, the then Minister of Sports & Youth Affairs Kiren Rijiju announced Khelo India University. In the month of October 2020, the minister virtually inaugurated eight Khelo India State Centres of Excellence (KISCEs) across India. The eight states include: Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Kerala, Telangana, Nagaland, Karnataka and Odisha.

Strokes Of Success

Navya Singal, a swimmer and a 1st year student of psychology honours at LSR College, New Delhi, has already won three gold, four silver and two bronze medals in SGFI National School Games, SFI All India National Club Championships and Khelo India Youth Games. “From a sub-junior to a junior and now a senior, my journey here has been good. (It’s about) tough training, scolding, injuries, rehabilitation, competitions, medals, trophies, jubilations, media interviews, plenty of media coverage, stardom in my school throughout, and all that”, adds Singal.

Swimming is her lifeline. She has been doing swimming training and doing competitions for well over 12 years now, she has been part of the SAI-Glenmark National Swimming Academy (Talkatora Aquatic Complex) — now a ‘National Centre of Excellence’ — since its inception. Since it’s also a Khelo India Training Centre, all are Khelo India swimmers here.

As more people/students are more focussed towards sports, government is also taking initiatives to maintain and provide infrastructure. “Earlier, we used to build top infrastructure for a major event, but after the event, that infrastructure used to remain idle. After the Commonwealth Games, they converted Talkatora into National Swimming Association and now into SAI Glenmark National Centre of Excellence. So, the best swimmers are getting the opportunity to get training here. Same thing is happening to other sports too. So, we are sharing that infrastructure for betterment of athletes,” explains Partha Pratim Manjumder, Head Coach, SAI-Glenmark Aquatic Foundation National Centre of Excellence.

The Centre of Excellence in New Delhi has best hostel facilities for boys and girls. Under the Khelo India Scheme, the training and costume expenses of the swimmers are taken care of by the government. Their schooling is free of charge with an understanding of the Bal Bharti Public School’s branch located nearby. Their training, nutrition and even private tuitions (optional if parents engage them and pay for it) are taken care of. The swimmers have easy access to a nutritionist, physiotherapist, doctor and a psychologist. The aquatic complex is complete with an Olympic-size pool, warm-up pool, diving pool and a gym besides a well-appointed hostel and supporting infrastructure.

Navya adds, “The competition is in the water, outside it we are a clan and the academy has played its nurturing role for this to happen. The coaches, nutritionist, psychologist, physiotherapists all work as a team to nurture each swimmer. They instil a sense of unity in the swimmers at the academy. This programme has benefited many children from modest backgrounds who are among India’s top performers today. Here, everyone is only a swimmer and that is what is celebrated here.”

Gone are the days when there were no proper coaches and instruments to play. Ruchika Nadkar, 46, a badminton player from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, used to be a champion of her time. Sport is in her genes. Her father was a Ranji player, her mother was into table tennis, her husband still plays badminton tournaments and her daughter Janvi is a shining star of table tennis with multiple medals.

“The journey started from the housing society court and I never turned back. I won many championships but at that time incentives were zero or very nominal…. We were not even paid the railway ticket to reach the tournament. The entire team travelled without tickets to be a part of the badminton championship in Hyderabad,” she recounts, and adds, “Self-motivation was the only incentive we were born with.”

PPP Support

This is not the situation now. Ruchika’s daughter Janvi is already a force to reckon with and at 16, she has participated in over 40 tournaments and won several medals. “I tried all the sports and developed the love for table-tennis. It was a struggle when my parents used to play. I have had it easier, as they provide me everything, including equipment, shoes and good accommodation,” she acknowledges.

The support is being extended by parents also because they see the government (public) and private (corporates) entities coming forward to take care of players’ needs.

Because of the various schemes like Khelo India, or state government schemes, families too are supporting their wards to pursue their sport of choice. Not only

that, there are many corporate firms coming forward to support games like kho-kho, ice-hockey, swimming etc. In its quest to nurture the talent in Ice hockey among youth, Iskate by Roseate has collaborated with the Ice Skating Association of India for over a decade to provide the necessary infrastructure and support in order to provide a strong platform for winter games in India. As the only true ice sports facility in India which is available through the year, Iskate takes upon itself the responsibility of encouraging young talent in winter sports.

Karan Rai, Business Head of Iskate By Roseate, says, “Under the tutelage of accomplished and experienced trainers, the Iskate School offers basic, intermediate and advanced levels of training in winter sports like ice hockey and ice skating. Professional training for Olympic sports like figure skating, speed skating and ice hockey is also offered at the school. The faculty at the school includes All India National coaches and athletes. Training sessions and camps spearheaded by international coaches visiting from the US, Canada, Russia, Korea and Germany are also hosted at the school.”

“Such games were dependent on Shimla and Gulmarg where the weather was always unpredictable and the venue was unapproachable for the common athlete. Skaters had to face disappointment whenever a championship would get cancelled due to bad weather. Ever since ISKATE by Roseate has come up, we have been able to have regular camps and championships. Earlier, we used to receive 15-20 enrolments, which is now above 100. The overall response has been great,” says Jagraj Singh Sahney, Secretary General, Ice Skating Association of India.

He further explains, “In a year, we have one All India National championship, multiple Challenge Cups and Open National Championships – for figure and speed skating individually. In ice skating we do not have leagues – we organise camps and championships individually.”

At least 12 national professional sports leagues have already started in India, and each has a difference scale of development. Hockey League is one of the most loved and watched games of India. The Hockey Federation of India conceived the league in 2005, three years before the IPL took place in 2008. However, the league was wrapped-up in 2008 due to some corruption allegations on federation. It was officially launched in 2013.

“Leagues give us exposure of the games at international level. In the leagues, we try to involve international players so our players can learn from them,” says Sriprakash, hockey coach at the Sports Authority of India (SAI).

The momentum being created across sports is bound to create more podium finishes.