To be a part of an Olympics-bound squad for one’s country is always a fascinating dream to nurture. Olympics is the pinnacle that every player wants to reach.
After every great feat by a player at national championship, a question arises: “Are you preparing for the Olympics?” This is the phantasmagorical question that every player wants to answer in the affirmative but it is not always that everyone gets to answer that.
There are a few crestfallen players who, despite pursuing their beloved sport with all sweat and toil, do not figure in the Olympic family. We all know that in sport you win or lose but there are many who can’t make that distinction. They always lose.
It is not always about the selection of a team or players for Olympics but it is more disheartening to know that your sport is not even recognized to be in the Olympics. I have always dreamed of winning a medal with those miraculous five rings but when I first got to play for the State team, I discovered that my game can’t take me to the Olympics. My heart sank but I was assured that by next Olympics, it would be a part of it.
I don’t play cricket, a non-Olympic sports, but so glamorous and so well-paying. I play netball! It is one of those few games being played and promoted in India for some decades but yet to gain the deserving recognition.
Netball is a slowly acquiring fame, especially in the women’s category. It was launched in India in 1926 and the Netball Federation of India was established in 1978. I have been playing this game for nine years and still I am often asked: “What is netball?”
Netball became an International Olympic Committee (IOC)-recognised sport in 1995 but an Olympic debut remains a dream. The International Netball Federation has recognised more than 60 national teams.
Netball is popular in Commonwealth countries. It is a team game that can capture people’s imagination. It has the potential to be the acme of team sports, spell binding and lovable. It is a regular at the Commonwealth Games.
Rio Olympics is round the corner and the saga of netball’s quest for recognition continues. For now, netball players can’t dream to participate in Olympics but may be in the future they can. I know the grind is tough. I am a sportsperson and respect every game. Until netball makes it big, I will continue to cheer my fellow sportspersons at the Olympics. Their glory is mine too!
(The author is a national level netball player)
