SYDNEY, SEPTEMBER 27: And so the curtain falls on an over-hyped, overambitious but seriously under-prepared Indian Olympic campaign. The story of India's travails in Sydney was summed up succinctly today when Gurcharan Singh, leading by a point with a few seconds to go, let his guard down and eventually lost the bout and his chance for a medal.The result was similar to yesterday's hockey match: Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, something India has specialised in over the years. This time, though, expectations were higher. There was talk of five medals: Hockey, tennis, shooting, boxing and weightlifting. One out of five suggests something is very wrong.That much was hinted at today by Minister of State for Sports Shahnawaz Khan, who said he would revamp the sports policy in light of the events over the past 10 days. ``I will go back and submit my report to the Prime Minister,'' he said at the Darling Harbour boxing hall.Khan said the Government would like to revamp the National Institute of Sports, Patiala, on the lines of the Australian Institute of Sports in Canberra, which he visited. ``The Canberra institute is much smaller but what makes the difference is the accountability,'' he said.He added that a refresher course for Indian coaches would be introduced. ``Simply producing coaches is not the answer to our problem. We have to have quality,'' he said.The minister also admitted that many more officials than required were present in Sydney for the Games; even Vajpayee had raised questions about it, he said. ``But we have not brought them here. The Government has sent only eight observers (four for each week of the Games). For the rest you may talk to the federations and the IOA,'' he said.India's performance during the Games, Khan admitted, was not up to the mark. However, he sought to deflect any criticism of the Government. ``This time you can't accuse the Government. We have given all the money and teams were cleared much in advance. This time the responsibility lies with the federations and the Indian Olympic Association.''
