India's emergence on the world stage of track and field sporting events

Indian sporting achievements, which hitherto were few and far between, are now coming with a certain regularity that warms the cockles of the heart of the Indian populace. The latest has been the appearance of five athletes in the finals of various sporting events at the 2022 World Championships held in Oregon USA. Murali Sreeshankar (Long Jump), Avinash Sable (Steeplechase), Annu Rani (Javelin throw - females), Eldhose Paul (Triple Jump), Rohit Yadav and Neeraj Chopra (Javelin throw - males) - all carved a name for themselves and made the country proud by their impressive performances that saw them making it to the finals of their respective events. While these appearances translated into just one silver medal, the performance on display was stupendous, especially in the context of India's historical drought of track and field sporting achievements.

Am pretty sure that while increased exposure, drive to excel and training facilities have played a major role in these achievements, there is also some contribution coming from the current political dispensation in power that has attempted to break free the sporting federations in India from the shackles of bureaucracy and a 'chalta-hai' culture. Given below is a link to an article that appeared in the Indian Express newspaper on the above mentioned five finalists.

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