2010 Commonwealth games- Crowning glory or sorry story!

In 2003, when India won the rights to host the 2010 Commonwealth games over Canada, we Indians were a happy and proud lot. So much so, that it made headlines and people were talking about how this would be the platform on which we could launch a bid for the 2020 Olympics. India got a lot of publicity in the international media too for being only the second nation in Asia to have an opportunity to host a multi-sport event.

It was an excellent opportunity for us to showcase our culture, our ability to host large events and it would also have been a reason for us to resurrect our ailing or should I say non-existent sports infrastructure. With our reputation and image at stake, it would only be fair to assume that no stone would be left unturned as far as preparation goes. Alas - this was not to be. We have made news albeit for all the wrong reasons. Preparations are behind schedules for 14 of the 19 sports venues. The Commonwealth Federation maintains that, if India is not able to buck up, this sporting event would have to be cancelled. What a disgrace this would turn out to be for us Indians! Given the amount of time we had at hand – 7 years no less, it is extremely disappointing that a country of a billion plus population is struggling to host an international event of this stature.

And what has been our response to this so far - Instead of taking this time to introspect and initiate corrective action, the reaction has been typically confrontational with mudslinging and name calling. The latest being, Mr. Suresh Kalmadi, the head of the organising committee, accusing the game’s CEO, Mike Hooper, of being useless and demanding his repatriation. Is precious time not being wasted doing blame storming?

So is this the end of the road –or is there still a small ray of hope, maybe not – but I’m an incurable optimist. If one goes back in time, and I mean way back, there does seem to be an uncanny parallel / precedent – the 1982 inaugural Asian Games. With only a year to go and preparations nowhere close to where there should have been, there was chaos. But after the reins were handed over to a young and vibrant Rajiv Gandhi, he along with a bunch of ‘technocrats’ turned it around and made it one of the most memorable events in our sporting annals.

We still have a chance to emerge with our heads held high - A chance to protect our pride from getting bashed. The moot question is will history repeat itself! The countdown has begun. Wake up India and Chak de !!!