So, 12th August saw the culmination of the sporting extravaganza- the XXX London Olympics. The USA emerged the greatest sporting power of the world pipping Asian giants China at the very fag end of the games. In fact, China, which won its first Olympic medal only in 1984 at the Los Angeles Olympics, has improved leaps and bounds in the subsequent Olympics to emerge as a sporting Superpower with 87 medals in the London Olympics including 38 Gold medals. India on the other hand, though it came up with its best ever medal haul of 6 medals (no Gold), lagged behind at the 55nd position.
The heroes for India this Olympic are all diminutive sports persons from the field of Wrestling, Shooting, Boxing and Badminton. The heroes from the wrestling arena were Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt who won a silver and bronze medal respectively. Both the wrestlers overcame physically superior opponents and also injuries suffered during their respective bouts to hand India, their best ever Olympics wrestling performance. Sushil Kumar, infact became the first Indian sports person ever to win 2 Olympics medals. His silver medal at London was an improvement from the bronze that he had won at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
From the shooting arena, the unexpected hero to emerge was Vijay Kumar Sharma from an obscure village in Himachal Pradesh, a soldier in the Indian army. When his Russian opponent in the preliminary stages broke the world record, he came under immense pressure. He withstood the pressure and moved into the final and held his nerve to garner the silver medal. The other medal from the shooting arena came from the illustrious shooter Gagan Narang who overcame the disappointment of the loss of reigning champion Abhinav Bindra at the prelim rounds to bag the bronze medal in the finals.
Magnificent MC Mary Kom, from a small village in Manipur, that has virtually no infrastructure became India's first women boxing medalist, when she won the bronze medal in her 51 kg category. This pugilist, a mother of two, with a never say die attitude, smashed social as well as physical barriers on her way to Olympic glory.
Similarly, Saina Nehwal from a village in Haryana, notorious for it female foeticide cases, emerged as the first Indian woman to bag a medal in the Olympics, when she won a bronze in the Badminton games. A true tribute to the determination and will power of Indian women.
All in all, a much improved performance from the Indian athletes this time from their previous appearances, though the elusive gold medal remained just that, elusive. The thing that need to be imbibed by all Blue Caramelers from the heroes of this year's Olympics is to understand the fact that all of them had to face tremendous hardships and sufferings in their quest for Olympics glory. It would have been easier for them to just quit and enjoy life. Why would a mother like Mary Kom be away from her family and comforts of her environs? The reason is passion that these sport persons have to become winners. All it takes is to stand the eight time after you have fallen down seven times, to emerge as a true Hero and a winner for life, but unfortunately people with limited thinking and no zest for life, who are sure shot loosers, have difficulty in recognizing this reality!
Magnificent MC Mary Kom, from a small village in Manipur, that has virtually no infrastructure became India's first women boxing medalist, when she won the bronze medal in her 51 kg category. This pugilist, a mother of two, with a never say die attitude, smashed social as well as physical barriers on her way to Olympic glory.
Similarly, Saina Nehwal from a village in Haryana, notorious for it female foeticide cases, emerged as the first Indian woman to bag a medal in the Olympics, when she won a bronze in the Badminton games. A true tribute to the determination and will power of Indian women.
All in all, a much improved performance from the Indian athletes this time from their previous appearances, though the elusive gold medal remained just that, elusive. The thing that need to be imbibed by all Blue Caramelers from the heroes of this year's Olympics is to understand the fact that all of them had to face tremendous hardships and sufferings in their quest for Olympics glory. It would have been easier for them to just quit and enjoy life. Why would a mother like Mary Kom be away from her family and comforts of her environs? The reason is passion that these sport persons have to become winners. All it takes is to stand the eight time after you have fallen down seven times, to emerge as a true Hero and a winner for life, but unfortunately people with limited thinking and no zest for life, who are sure shot loosers, have difficulty in recognizing this reality!
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