OPEX 2020: A call for the private sector to step up for Olympic medals

Too much too late?

The primary objective of the National Sports Policy of 2001 was mass participation. The policy aimed at utilizing sports as a tool to instil a sense of national pride among the younger generation. In 2006, then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in his review of the policy, said that the biggest bane of Indian sports is the lack of a sporting culture in the country. Six years on, Sports Minister Ajay Maken echoes similar sentiments. A small medal tally at London can be attributed to the fact that a sporting culture has yet not been developed in India. With the Indian mentality being more prone towards academic achievements, parents are shying away from letting their children play sports, not even for leisure let alone professionally.

We started planning for London in 2011. One and a half year prior to the Olympic Games. OPEX 2012 was started in 2011. India managed to get a respectable 6 medals in spite of that. OPEX 2020 has already been launched. As part of the run up to 2020, the government is expecting a grant of Rs 500 crores from the Planning Commission in order to set up sports institutions, produce world class trainers, technicians and sports researchers. We plan to use 2016 Games as a platform for 2020 and hence focus on winning medals at Rio will be considerably less. With these initiatives, amongst others (read corporate backing) in place, one should expect more than the proposed 25 medals. We must concentrate on disciplines such as wrestling, shooting, archery, badminton, boxing as we have already won medals in those sports. We must also concentrate on sports like athletics and cycling since bulk of the Olympics medals are in those sports.

However, one cannot help but ask the question why weren’t these initiatives taken earlier? Training world class coaches, setting up sports institutes, developing infrastructure, etc. We complain about not having good enough nutritionists, researchers, technicians, and so on and so forth, but have we tried to develop the same? Have we, as a nation, attempted to fill the gap that we so tirelessly bicker about?

Everyone’s talking about the Indian medal tally hitting double digits in Rio. Sports minister Ajay Maken believes we are on the path to winning 25 medals at the 2020 games. OPEX 2020 is already underway. With 8 years to go before 2020, lets hope the dream of a double digit medal tally doesn’t remain just that – a dream.

The private sector is skeptical about investing in upcoming sports because they are not sure of their returns. Sports in India cannot develop if the private sector does not invest. It is a vicious circle, unless you try you are never going to find out its value, and corporate sector is hesitant to invest until value is guaranteed. Corporates should be more willing to move out of the tried and tested rut. They should be open to experimenting a little more. Start off with grass roots development. Trust people with passion to make things happen. You never know, you might just hit a jackpot.

The private sector has invested heavily in cricket. There are innumerable sponsors for the IPL. One fact that seems to be lost is that when you have a bucket full of sponsors for one event, its hard to distinguish the importance and contribution of each. But if a corporate sponsors one athlete, and that athlete goes on to perform well at the games, then it’ll be a huge coup for them to have backed a winning horse when no one would have taken a chance at it.

We talk about corporate social responsibility, its not simply a matter of giving your money away. The corporates ought to look at investment in sports as more than just a means to earn medals. It brings pride and glory to a nation to see its heroes become the best in the world at what they do. And being associated with such a achievement can do wonders for the PR of a brand.

But as Maken has said, the corporate sector requires more transparency before it can make a leap into investing in sports. Transparency from our sports federations. BCCI has not been recognized this year by the government, because of its lack of transparency. How can we expect corporates to put in faith if our own government can’t?

Investment for Rio has started pouring in, but with the backing of some of the richest people in the world, our top corporate giants, it will be so much easier to harness the immense potential of a country of a billion. Maken has set a target of 25 medals. But why limit ourselves to that? Anytime you strive to meet a minimum benchmark, you end up doing just that. Why not aim for a medal in every discipline? Absurdly ridiculous, but that’s how we ought to think if we are to become the nation which stands alone at the top of the world when it comes to sporting achievement. Sure, focus your resources where the chances of medals are more likely by all means. Don’t have to do an even spread, but do keep the aim as high as possible.

We are not short of brains, manpower, hunger and determination to be the best in the world. All that’s needed is a medium to channel and harness this immense potential which we are bursting with. And then there’s no telling how high our medal tally can climb in the future.