Medal mix points to a tectonic shift for India
New champions in diverse sports change narrative
NEW DELHI: On Friday, Sawarn Singh, Sukhmeet Singh, Dattu Bhokanal, Om Prakash and — none of them household names in India — triumphantly raised their oars, and their hands, as a nation cheered.
The joy of the gold-medal-winning men’s rowing team in the quadruple sculls event pointed to an Asian Games in which Indian sport is breaking new barriers — the daily ‘hit rate’ of medals is surging, the range of medal disciplines is widening, and the medalwinner is becoming younger, leading experts to describe Jakarta 2018 as a watershed moment in the country’s sporting journey.
This week, India’s champions have struck gold at a faster pace, won medals in sports as diverse as sepak takraw and wushu, and two of them, gold-medallist Saurabh Chaudhary and silvermedallist Shardul Vihan, are 15 years old.
“We, as a nation, have arrived in the sporting field. I’m very hopeful and confident we’ll keep getting better. In the Rio Olympics, we won only two medals but there were about 15 athletes who went there to win a medal as compared to earlier when there were only three or four. The numbers are increasing. The whole equation has changed. We have to look forward,” said Geet Sethi, multiple world billiards champion and director of Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ), which supports 67 of India’s elite athletes with funding and training.
“This is the culmination of the entire eco-system coming together which consists of the government, federations, NGOS, private enterprises, athletes themselves and coaches. Every- thing is getting professional,” Sethi added.
Sawarn Singh, Bhokanal, Prakash and Sukhmeet Singh’s victory gave India only its second gold from rowing in Asian Games history after Bajrang Lal Takhar clinched the men’s single sculls at Guangzhou 2010.
In martial art wushu, India stunned the continent by winning four bronze medals, the men’s regu team won a bronze in sepak takraw (like volleyball, but with the foot).
“It is heartening to see sportspersons from different disciplines winning medals and bringing glory to the nation. It is clearly an indication of how much depth we have. Now that we know what else we are good at, we need to give them a lot of encouragement,” said Pankaj Advani, also a former world champion billiards and snooker player who won two Asian Games golds in 2006 and 2010.
SAWARN SINGH AND SUKHMEET SINGH, WHO WERE PART OF GOLDMEDALWINNING MEN’S ROWING TEAM, BELONG TO MANSA IN PUNJAB
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Sarwan’s medals and the honour he got over the years has motivated many youngsters in the surrounding villages to join the Indian Army. LAKHWINDER, Sawarn’s brother
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We have just four acres of land. So, both of my sons joined the army. Sukhmeet got a chance to pursue rowing and he has made all of us proud. AMRIK, Sukhmeet’s father
CHANDIGARH: What’s common between Sawarn Singh, Dattu Bhokanal, Om Prakash and Sukhmeet Singh?
That they won the Asian Games gold in men’s quadruple sculls rowing in Palembang is one. The second is, all of them are from the Indian Army.
The third is, other than Bhokanal, none of them had any exposure to rowing before they joined the Services.
The fourth is, all of them are from humble backgrounds and joined the Army to get a better life. The fifth is, they all picked up rowing because they found out that winning a national medal in sport meant a promotion. And so began a journey from different parts of the country that met at the Pune Army Sports Institute and culminated in India’s second-ever Asian Games gold in rowing — the first was won by Bajrang Lal Takhar in 2010.
Till three years back, Sukhmeet’s only exposure to rowing was that Sawarn Singh, his friend from neighbouring village Dalelwala Mansa, was making India and Punjab proud by winning international medals, including a silver in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.
This prompted 24-year-old Sukhmeet, who hails from Kis- hangarh Pharwahi village, to take the plunge — join the Army, pick up rowing and win medals to get promotion and make India proud.
They did make India proud on Friday. The four armymen stood atop the Asian Games podium with the Tri-colour unfurling to the National Anthem.
“As we have just a small plot of land, a job was a must for us to get a decent living. I joined Punjab Police in 2007 and the next year, Sawarn joined the Indian Army,” said Sarwan’s elder brother, senior constable Lakhwinder Singh.
“Sawarn’s medals and the honour he got over the years because of his sporting success has motivated many youngsters in the surrounding villages to join the Army,” Lakhwinder added.
“Sawarn was picked for the national camp after he won gold at the 2011 Ranchi National Games. There he met Bajrang Lal Takhar and his perspective towards rowing changed. Asian Games and Olympics gold became his dream,” said Lakhwinder.
Sukhmeet was introduced to rowing in 2016 and in one year he won the national title. “We have just four acres of land. So, both of my sons joined the army. Sukhmeet got a chance to pursue rowing and today he has made all of us proud,” said Amrik, Sukhmeet’s father. Another rower from Punjab’s Thatthi Bhai village in Moga, Bhagwan Singh, won bronze in double sculls.