The battlefield

Hyderabad prepares to host the 4th Military World Games

IT’S the mother of all games that soldiers play. And it’s set to take place in Hyderabad. Come October 2007, and the IT City will play host to the 4th Military World Games (MWG), considered second only to the Olympics in terms of international participation and sheer display of sporting might.

‘‘We’re looking forward to host the creme de la creme of sporting talent from 110 armies here,’’ says Lt Gen Ashok Kapur, Chief of Staff, Southern Command, and the man at the helm of the operations, who now divides his time between Pune, his place of posting, and Gachibowli, his camp office in Hyderabad. He admits it’s quite a mammoth task, but the Andhra Pradesh Government, which made a successful bid for the Games in 2003, is smoothing all the rough edges.

Held every four years under the aegis of the International Military Sports Council known by the acronym CISM, the first edition of the Military World Games (MWG) was organised at Rome in 1995, a year after the Olympics.

‘‘Earlier, the CISM used to hold 15 to 20 world championship every year by gathering all its member nations. But in 1995 it combined these events into one and hosted the first MWG to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the end of the World War II and of the ratification of the United Nations Organisation Charter,’’ says Lt Gen Kapur.

Interestingly, India became a member of the CISM only in 1999, much after Pakistan. ‘‘Our participation too has been quite lean,’’ says Kapur. So has been the medal haul. But Hyderabad, he hopes, would prove luckier.

The city caught the eye of CISM President Brig Gen Dott Gianni Golainto when it hosted the 1st Afro-Asian Games in October 2003. Today, Gachibowli, the epicentre of the Games, is a jumble of activity. ‘‘We are working on building a games village on 9 acres to accommodate 2,000 players,’’ says Kamal V V Rao, MD of Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP).

But any comparisons with the Delhi Commonwealth Games 2010 are unwelcome. Mention the Delhi Games to Rao and he says: ‘‘Our Games are on a much larger canvas with the participation of 110 countries against 71 in Commonwealth.’’

Story continues below this ad

THE Games will see over 6,000 participants, including 1,500 women players. The Games will also see a rare synergy among the three wings of the armed forces, which will be eyeing one of the many eclectic trophies on offer. Take, for instance, the CISM Solidarity Trophy which is given to any nation that has demonstrated exceptional solidarity in favor of one or more CISM member nations.

Then there is the CISM overall fair-play trophy presented to an athlete or a team, or a nation, for showing an exemplary spirit of friendship and sportsmanship. In 1995, it went to the Canadian Triathlon athlete who, on being erroneously placed first, returned her gold medal to the actual champ. No wonder Lt Gen Kapur turns lyrical the moment you mention these Games. ‘‘They are not just about sports, they’re much more than that.’’

Yes, sir.