Indian became the home to seven Olympic medals this year. The players gave their best and made sure they made themselves and the whole nation proud and no matter what they were successful. It is indeed something we should celebrate and boast about. But do we even deserve them? Are we as Indians, doing anything for their well-being and benefit?
These are the list of incidents that shows how much of a struggle the Olympians had to do cause of the lack of basic amenities:
ADVERTISEMENT
1. Before the Olympics started, Uwe Hohn, Neeraj Chopra‘s coach, said that India’s sports organization did not do enough to prepare Neeraj.
Neeraj could travel to Europe for training just because of JSW Sports, that organization supports Asian and commonwealth gold medal winners. Now that India’s organization is so proud, they didn’t even do anything significant for the win.
Not only that, but he also talked about the lack of nutrients in the diets of Indian athletes. Not only camps, training our athletes lack nutrients in their diet too. Wow.
Advertisment
Interview of Neeraj’s coach before the Olympics. Our athletes win despite the system not because of it. https://t.co/wQqaLtMNKm
— Prajwal (@prajwalmanipal) August 8, 2021
2. Remember Lovlina Borgohain? The one who won a bronze medal at the Olympics for boxing. Her village did not have motorable roads, it was only after her fantabulous win, her village got the road.
Leaving the road, Guwahati village faces a lot of issues with water and pipelines too. All of the water depends on tube wells and natural sources. The village lacks hospitals as well, apart from the basic primary health care facilities.
Advertisment
Indian olympic medal winner @LovlinaBorgohai ‘s home gets a motor-able road in Assam to welcome her. pic.twitter.com/wUnTKsY79A
— Sudhir Chaudhary (@sudhirchaudhary) August 4, 2021
3. Wrestler Ravi Dahiya’s village in Haryana lacked basic amenities as well. It did not have basic living necessities like potable drinking water, electric supply, etc.
Dahiya won a silver medal at the Olympics and told the media how his win at the Olympics would make his entire village win the basic amenities. And tbh, that’s the saddest thing to hear.
4. Mirabai Chanu, the recent weight lifting champion, said that just because she did not have transportation facilities, she had to ask for lifts from trucks to her sports training center.
The beautiful fact is, Mirabai did not fail to thank and appreciate the help of the truck drivers who helped her.
Olympiad @mirabai_chanu home was more than 25 km from the Sport Academy. No means of transport during those days, except trucks which carried river sands to the City. These truck drivers gave her lift everyday. Today she rewarded these truck drivers. pic.twitter.com/9WegUkwjkz
— Naorem Mohen (@laimacha) August 5, 2021
5. Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia alleged that they did not get the full prize money as they were promised by the state government.
Even after one year of winning Asian Games in Jakarta they still were waiting on the same prize money.
ADVERTISEMENT
6. National hockey player Salima Tete who made India proud at the Olympics have no facilities in her village in Jharkhand.
Salima, the Indian hockey player who created history, does not have proper electricity and television facilities in her village. Though her village has more than 40 households, none of them has a television.
Jharkhand: Visuals from the residence of hockey player Salima Tete, in Badkichapar village of Simdega district
Tete is part of the Indian women’s hockey team that will take on Great Britain for Bronze medal in #TokyoOlympics today morning pic.twitter.com/DUmhtxoB36
— ANI (@ANI) August 6, 2021
1/ “Everyone in our village plays hockey, even though we have no facilities. Hockey gives us a purpose. But I’m the first player from my village to represent India at an international level,” says 19-YO #SalimaTete who made #Jharkhand proud with her efforts at #TokyoOlympics. pic.twitter.com/yjl4AV9qdX
— The Better India (@thebetterindia) August 3, 2021
2/ Salima hails from Badkichapar village in Jharkand’s Simdega, one of the worst Naxalism-affected districts in the state. It was in a dusty ground in this village that a young Salima, a farmer’s daughter, took her first steps in hockey.
— The Better India (@thebetterindia) August 3, 2021
ADVERTISEMENT
3/ Growing up on subsidised rice grains, she would use wooden sticks since the family was unable to afford proper hockey blades. In fact, her family and fellwo villagers are unable to see her in action at the Olympics due to lack of mobile connectivity and TV set in the village.
— The Better India (@thebetterindia) August 3, 2021
Has our country failed it’s Olympians?
