Watching the amazing gymnasts is uplifting and inspiring. “Little” girls flying around defying gravity while looking cute at the same time. A treat to watch!
The little Indian girl struggling with the horizontal bar, kept falling off, but gamely remounted and “finished” her round. No doubt a poor performance but watching her returning to the bar after each falling dismount was, for me, a “moment” of courage, determination and character. If she was dying in front of the audience, her actions or face never showed it, even fleetingly.
And when she returns to “camp”, what does her “lady” coach do? Thumb her nose away and walk away! Contrast this to the coach of most other teams when a gymnast had dropped a few points. warm embrace and encouraging words.
Thats the difference we Indians must watch and transform. Ofcourse everybody loves a winner, but shun a loser? That too your own “ward”? Sad, indeed.
BTW this isnt unique to our sports. Look into your own life and you’ll notice how common this debilitating behavioural characteristics is.
If sports is a bridge for friendships amongst peoples and nations, it can also be telling lessons to learn. Thats is, if we want to learn.