Pursuit of Excellence in sport: Three icons hold forth HD

Track 3 of Day 2 had former tennis champion Vijay Amritraj in conversation with former India cricket captain Anil Kumble and former international swimmer Nisha Millet on ‘Achieving Leadership in the Indian Sports Landscape’. The three sports icons shared glimpses of the prejudices and stereotypes they each encountered while choosing sports over studies, from grandmothers who demanded to know why one spent tons of money and travelled across the seas only to lose (matches) to relatives who asked their respective parents if their children were poor in studies and therefore had taken to sport! “Thankfully, the attitude towards sports and sportspersons has changed,” said Vijay Amritraj and Nisha Millet added that sports must be regarded as complementary to Math and Physics. Anil Kumble suggested that more work had to be done to strengthen sports infrastructure at the grassroots and provide good coaches in districts and towns. “While education is ingrained in the child’s psyche, sports is regarded as an extra-curricular activity. It is crucial to have sports as an integral part of education for India to become a sporting nation. We need to recognize our own icons (and not foreign ones) and start promoting them for kids to get inspired. We need a support system for children focusing on sports. Sport not only gives one an opportunity to do things, but also to give back,” he explained.