By Benjamin Lyngdoh
When one thinks/talks about sports and games across disciplines, one cannot help but factor in the Olympics. Across its grandeur and being a showpiece event, the inherent truth of the Olympics remains; it states, ‘the important thing in life is not to triumph but to compete, not victory but combat, not to have vanquished but to have fought well, not winning but taking part’ which is the famous quote by the father of modern Olympics, Pierre de Coubertin. As we filter down towards other sporting events, we come to our national games and for all intents and purposes it is one of the Indian showpiece events. At the outset, I am not comparing the Olympics to our national games for that would mean comparing ‘a peanut’ to ‘apples’; that being an illogical and unfair comparison. Nonetheless, the crux of it being ‘games across disciplines’ is not to be impugned or even demeaned in the slightest manner. In the Indian context, it is the apple of all sporting events and with that comes the prestige and honour of hosting it. Accordingly, in the year 2022 the national games will be held in our state which also brings a sense of sporting ‘anticipation and excitement’. However, along with that come a ‘bunch of issues and concerns’. Accordingly, I place the following pointers for our collective consideration.
Firstly, the moment we talk about sports in Meghalaya the issue which creeps into people’s mind is the physical infrastructure. Fair enough, as it is indeed important. Keeping this in mind, a casual look around the state in terms of assessing our sports infrastructure one can sadly see anything significant. We do not have standard stadiums and training facilities; add to that the poor maintenance practices. As a case in point, the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at Polo is the only stadium of some standing and it too is not free of critical issues (which can be experienced when one goes to watch the I-League matches). Amidst this quagmire, our state is faced with the challenging task of hosting the national games in 2022. In the face of such a mega event, 2022 is not far off. A status check will tell us that we are not even close to hosting the event successfully. Thus, now there is a rush to construct stadiums and related infrastructure. Importantly, this brings into focus a question; can we construct a standard stadium in two or even three years? If we factor in the process to construct such a huge structure then it is plain impossible. But of course the government will argue that it is possible. Worryingly, what sort of stadium would this hasty construction result in? By all means there is a very good chance that it will be another poorly constructed stadium which will enter into dilapidation in no time. Is this the way to go about our national games? We are not only starting on the wrong foot but are also on the back foot!
Secondly, physical infrastructure is not everything; people and their involvement is the key. In the true sense of the term, the success of the national games must be seen in terms of participation and contribution of the host population. To this end, a great deal of sensitization is required. To date many are skeptical about the games. There is no clarity over its holding and how things are going to pan out. It must be noted that the national games are indeed a ‘mega event’ for a state like Meghalaya. Hence, the people must stand up and give their full support. However, currently it is seen as a programme of the government detached from the sentiments (and sometimes even knowledge) of the people. As such, a holistic PR exercise is required to instill a sense of belongingness towards the games. The practice of giving free entry into the stadia during the games (which has always been a common practice) is not enough; ownership is important. Hence, its brand creation and marketing must begin now. Over the course of 2019 this must be the focus and the starting point can be the specification of the national games ‘logo and slogan’. Here, the youth may be involved as individuals/teams for charting out the ‘logo and slogan’ through a games promotion competition. From here, other bigger things can gradually follow. The point being to get the people in to see it out.
Thirdly, the performance of Meghalaya in the national games has always been below average. In most disciplines we do lag far behind. 2022 is the chance to correct and reverse this trend and the process begins now. Glaringly, till date there is very little mention (or no mention) about the athletes and their preparedness and more importantly their preparation. They are sidelined and marginalized as if they are not significant in the entire scheme of things. There is no athlete promotion. Moreover, it seems there is no plan on how we are going to approach the other national games leading up to our national games in 2022. All that is happening right now is the depressing mention of physical infrastructure and its construction. Wake up Meghalaya! We are not going to win any medals for stadium quality (except for a small bunch of people who will be taking accolades over their timely/untimely construction). The real heroes of the games are the athletes who will be giving their all in the field of competition. In fact, priority must be given to athletes and everything else is secondary. The national games (and 50 years as a state) will mean nothing for us if we give a dismal showing as a host. If anything, it will bring more disappointment and downright frustration. To this end, we do not have to go far and indulge in some expensive foreign sports learning tour; rather we can learn a lot from Manipur (which has been consistently doing well) itself and look upon their best practices.
Fourthly, there is a fundamental question covering the national games; what is it to us? Is it just a one time event/a one off sideshow/a travesty of sorts? Or is it a milestone towards something great and tangible in our sporting horizon. In reality, we have to answer this question first. This is because how we approach the games will depend upon the type of answer we give. If we are looking at the ‘national games 2022’ as a one off thing, etc; then it is better that we do not hold it in the first place. That way it will save a lot of people a lot of headache. However, if we are looking at it as a ‘milestone’; then the battle is already half won. In actuality, that is the crux of holding the games. It is not about Meghalaya turning 50 years and related attachments. It is pure and simple and downright obvious that it is just about creation of a new sporting future for the state; a sporting future based on a renewed culture, passionate work environment, unmatched desire, ruthless dedication and the thriving for champion performance. As such, the game is not about 2022 alone; rather it is for the years after that.
Lastly, the majority of the people want to see the games hosted by us. However, there is apprehension amongst many quarters lest we be led into embarrassment at a national scale. The eyes of the nation will be on us for around 10 to 15 days in 2022. Moreover, national media houses (like NDTV) are known to run a show of 15 minutes every morning on the earlier versions of the games. They will do the same in our case. In addition, do not rule out live coverage of the games by streamline sports channels like Star Sports, etc (in addition to Doordarshan which will be providing compulsory coverage). Alas, what will be our performance come the actual day is the real wonder (combined with fear)!
(The Author teaches at NEHU)