Tokyo and after
The historic moment of glory should be inscribed in letters of gold. The overall performance of the Indian contingent is no mean achievement in the backdrop of a raging pandemic. Unlike many other popular games, which have a committed audience to boast, athletes have to motivate themselves to do their best as hardly anyone notices and appreciates them to enhance their morale. Many who participated in the Olympics are from a rural background who have scaled greater heights with limited or inadequate infrastructure to hone their skills. Not resting on laurels, this euphoric moment should be sustained with an allocation of enhanced funds and training facilities to identify and nurture talent. It is clear that there is no scarcity of talent.
V. Subramanian,
Chennai
With the all-time best medals haul in Indian Olympic history, it is probably time for both the authorities and us people in India to start looking at how those who succeeded have done it rather than looking at what ails the system. Modern equipment, world-class training and a good financial support system are probably what are getting our sportspersons to be among the best in the world. Besides the medal winners, there have been quite a few near misses which only goes to show that we have a new breed of Olympians. With a little more focus in the hunt for genuine talent among our youth and training them to be mentally tough to face competition, the next Olympics is sure to see India firmly on the path to glory.
Yoganandh T.,
Salem, Tamil Nadu
Our favourable demographic profile does not seem to be yielding a proportionate performance in competitive sports. Scouting for talent and honing it in high-grade competition is needed to touch world class. This entails huge financing and drive. Governments and corporates must fund and innovate big time.
R. Narayanan,
Navi Mumbai
The bronze for the Indian men’s hockey team has won accolades from some of the former Pakistan hockey players who feel that the feat would give a boost to the game in the subcontinent. The team has rewritten history.
R. Sivakumar,
Chennai
This is jarring
The details in the report, “Casteist abuse shameful, says women’s hockey team skipper” (Inside pages, August 8), left one shame-faced. That the family of Vandana Katariya, one of the players in India’s women’s hockey team at the Olympics, faced alleged casteist abuse after the Indian team lost the semi-final clash, is disgusting. Winning and losing any game is a part and parcel of sport.
D. Sethuraman,
Chennai
While on one hand we are busy celebrating the heroic achievements of some of our Tokyo Olympians, it is disturbing that a few countrymen are intent on pulling down other achievers. One must realise that it takes much sweat and sacrifice for the families concerned to overcome sarcasm, taunts and bias in ensuring that their son or daughter fetches a medal for the country. Many of us need to learn lessons from these deeply inspiring life stories rather than demoralising or insulting some of our sporting heroes.
Jyoti Kunwar,
Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh
It is disheartening that there are some people in the country who cannot come to terms with a loss in a sporting event. India’s women’s hockey team did well. It is our duty to motivate them. Crass behaviour is unpalatable.
Aanya Singhal,
Noida, Uttar Pradesh
This mushrooming of religious/casteist discrimination in the country is alarming. Yet our political leaders seem reticent and do nothing to eliminate this menace for reasons best known to them. We are in need of comprehensive laws to enable the extermination of casteism in the country.
Thomas K.M.,
Muvattupuzha, Kerala
Hair loss
As a person who experienced severe hair loss (alopecia) from an early age, I found the article, “Some facts on hair – why it drops and how it grows” (‘Science & Technology’ page, August 8), to be educative, It was interesting to read that “traditional yoga exercises are seen to stimulate the growth of hair.... ” In my case, there was no hope and after trying traditional cures, ranging from oil concoctions to tonics, I have had to settle for a natural hair wig. I do envy the bountiful crown of hair that Olympian Neeraj Chopra has — a TV commentator says Neeraj is also known as Mowgli. I do hope that there is progress in abolishing quackery in trichology, which was also the theme of the 2012 meeting in Chennai of the Hair Research Society of India. There needs to be a breakthrough achieved in reversing hair loss.
Vedanth Bharadwaj,
Bengaluru
