Now that we have a gold, our appetites are whetted for more - even if the other prospects are dimming.
How do you describe the achievement of a 24-year-old who won the country’s first ever individual gold medal? Incredible? Phenomenal? Emotional? Historic? Well, throw in all these adjectives, as well as a few more, and then you may be able to do justice to the superlative effort of the man from Chandigarh.
That is what Abhinav Bindra’s heroics on the morning of August 11 meant to a nation which has been looking for over 100 years to see an Indian flag in the middle of the podium, with the national anthem being played in the background.
To say the least, Bindra got the Indian campaign off to a flying start. Bindra, who qualified in fourth place for the 10 m air rifle final, shot an overall score of (596+140.5) 700.5 in a thrilling finale which went right down to the last shot.
Money has poured in from all state government sports federations as well as corporates. But what is needed is to build on this magnificent achievement rather than rest on our laurels. The nation couldn’t have asked for a better start at Beijing.
While Bindra inscribed his name in the history books, there were quite a few disappointments in the Indian contingent, especially among Bindra’s sporting fraternity. Silver medallist in the last edition of Olympics, Rajyavardhan Rathore failed to hit the bull’s eye this time and dampened hopes of another medal from the talented shooting team.
Commonwealth Games hero Samaresh Jung too disappointed with his performance. So did the rest of the shooters, most notably Manavjit Singh Sandhu and Anjali Bhagwat. But, amidst the euphoria of Bindra’s medal heroics, it has been shoved into the background.
The other big medal hope, Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, are on course to fulfill their decade-old dream. After falling out bitterly, getting together, then again falling out, the Indian Express’s hopes of adding a medal to their kitty faded away in the quarter finals. It was a disappointing end to a partnership which brought so much glory to the nation since they first teamed up.
Sania Mirza flattered to deceive yet again. After a poor performance in the first set, Mirza retired hurt in the second set, and her hopes of doing well at Olympics were over. To be fair, Mirza came into Beijing after an injury hiatus and looked below par in the pre-Olympic tournaments.
If Sania disappointed, then Saina Nehwal rallied her best to give the country another medal. After a superb showing in the first few rounds, Nehwal succumbed in the quarter finals. It was disappointing to see her not fulfilling her medal ambition, but it does hold out a lot of hope for the future of Indian badminton. Her male counterpart Anup Sridhar managed to reach the second round, but failed to capitalise on his first-round performance.
The boxers remain on course to land a few more punches, as well as a likely medal. Boxers Jitender Kumar and Akhil Kumar reached the quarter finals, and the next week might just see another medal coming India’s way. The pugilists have looked to be in excellent touch and have justified the hopes resting on their shoulders. Apart from these two, even Vijender Kumar remains in the fray of reaching the semi finals.
The next week will see the track-and-field athletes give their best in Beijing. A lot of hopes will centre on long jumper Anju Bobby George, but a medal is unlikely to come from the track-and-field events.
In other events, the archers and the rowing team had disappointing performances and crashed out. The swimming duo of Virdhawal Khade and Sandeep Sejwal gave their best to create twin national records, but that was not enough to see them through in the semifinals of the 100 m freestyle and 200 m breaststroke events, respectively.
If the Games do end on the same note as they started, they will probably be the best ever Olympics for the country. The boxers remain the only genuine remaining medal contenders. If prior to the start of the Games, we had been offered one gold medal, most countrymen would have grabbed it with both hands. Bindra has fulfilled his as well as the nation’s dream. And, what’s more, after having tasted glory the first time, the country will seek more. Hopefully, the boxers will give the nation reason to rejoice.
