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We can laugh it off, or we can look at it this way: Do we really need the humiliation of seeing our runners, boxers, archers, wrestlers, swimmers, oarsmen, sailors end up as stragglers? Falling right out of medal contention, in some cases not even making an attempt to compete see chart?

The Olympics is all about winning; you don8217;t go there to simply breathe the same air as the best in your sport. You can, if you8217;re the runner from Kiribati whose dream is to stand alongside Maurice Greene; or the millionaire from Switzerland for whom shooting is a highly affordable flight of fancy. For India, sending athletes to the Olympics means spending big money, which we can ill afford.

The government spent Rs 94 crore on providing training and other facilities to India8217;s Athens-bound athletes in the past two years. That8217;s a lot of money which, if spent on just five or 10 and the hockey team, may have fetched better results.

So how have 75 people gone? Haven8217;t they cleared some minimum standards? Yes, they8217;ve all met the qualifying levels, whether through a ranking tournament, in the case of hockey, or by throwing the required distance or running in the specified time.

Next question: Who set the rules? Therein lies the catch. The marks/timings/distances are laid down by the International Olympic Committee, which, like all political bodies, seeks to please all, especially the less able. So the qualifying standards are kept low 8212; allowing athletes from not-so-small countries to join in as well.

Consider this: Discus thrower Neelam Jaswant Singh could have qualified for the men8217;s section too. Her career best throw is better than the men8217;s qualifying mark and, incidentally, even better than our male qualifier Vikas Gowda. The fact that Neelam wasn8217;t even in the medal contention in her event speaks volumes of the Olympic qualifying standards.

So it8217;s essentially a complimentary pass that needs to be rejected. Experts say that India needs to think big and be more realistic. 8216;8216;We have to set our own standards8217;8217;, says former Olympian middle-distance runner GS Randhawa. 8216;8216;Passing the qualifying mark shouldn8217;t be considered as the ticket to the Olympics. There should be a reality check on the athletes8217; chances at the Games.8217;8217;

To make things simpler for our athletes, they can choose the time and venue of when and where they wish to set the qualifying mark. Spread over months before the event the current Indian athletics qualifiers have done their bit in stadia across the globe 8212; Ukraine, Hungary 8212; and away from the media glare. The latter refers to the selection of the women8217;s 4215;400 relay team at Nehru Stadium, which was held without the media being informed.

That8217;s quite different from the way things are done in US, Australia or China. An Olympic trial is almost a mini-Olympics, with strict standards and checks being maintained. If Marion Jones, with all her six medals from Sydney, misses the mark, so be it. If Thorpe merely tumbles to a false start he has to depend on the magnanimity of his friend to get his sure-shot gold.

The answer is, of course, to specialise, focus on events where there are sure shots at success, where the outlay will fetch decent returns. That8217;s the Kenyan way. They don8217;t do field events, they don8217;t even have a relay team; instead, they focus on middle- and long-distance runs.

Or say Turkey; with a contingent 10 smaller than ours, they8217;ve already picked up three golds, a silver and two bronze in just two disciplines: wrestling and weightlifting.

The great Kenyan runner Kip Keino, who once trained Indian athletes, says there has to be a focus. 8216;8216;Look at your track record, the physique, and one can easily say that middle and long distance running could be the area of focus,8217;8217; he says.

The final word should rest with Milkha Singh, never one to shy from calling a spade a spade. 8216;8216;Don8217;t count numbers8217;8217;, he says. 8216;8216;One shouldn8217;t be afraid to send even a squad of just 10 athletes to the Games. Only the deserving and those with a chance of a medal should be sent.8217;8217;

Try telling that to the Indian Olympic Association. For a country hosting the Commonwealth Games and bidding for Asiad and Olympics the sight of 10 athletes walking behind the tri-colour would be PR from hell.