Make money run

With national eyeballs fixed firmly on next year8217;s World Cup 8212; and more immediately on the BCCI-ICC stand-off 8212; the relative obscurity in which the 32nd National Games played out was hardly surprising. Yet, as this newspaper has pointed out, these Games showcased an interesting new trend: the cash-for-medals model promoted assiduously by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. The implications that this approach has for the future of Indian sport are yet to be fully assessed.

But, first, let8217;s have it for Naidu 8212; and Andhra Pradesh 8212; for staging a spectacular show, one that prompted the IOA president, Suresh Kalmadi, to rate it the best national-level games that India has ever witnessed. The host state crowned that achievement by achieving conspicuous success on the field and running away with the highest tally of medals. But it is precisely this development that raises concerns. Andhra, by offering large sums of money 8212; including a Rs 3 lakh incentive for gold medallists 8212; managed to attract some of the best performers in Indian sport to run, swim, jump and throw under its flag. But, interestingly, as an Express analysis pointed out, this did not translate into great performances. Most of those who won gold medals, for instance, far from breaking records did not even better their own personal best. Money, therefore, can help enthuse athletes but if they are to deliver the goods, if they are to get on to the track of excellence, they need to be driven by something far more lasting. What is that certain something? It can, perhaps, be described as fire in the belly, as a hunger to win.

This is not to deny the important role that funding can play in rejuvenating Indian sport. But there is a caveat here. The money must not just be used as a means of securing personal rewards but to set up systems that make a qualitative difference to sporting performances in the long term. Prime Minister Vajpayee, with characteristic wit, rightly decried the khel khatam, paise hazam approach. What India needs is sustained and sustainable sporting excellence.