The recently concluded Commonwealth Games (CWG) were unlike the usual multidisciplinary sporting extravaganzas that we are used to seeing. A late replacement to Victoria as host, the Glasgow Games were more akin to an abridged version with fewer events and fewer participants. India finished fourth on the medal table, a commendable performance given that most of the sports that have formed the bulk of our medal haul had been removed. But questions of uncertainty have been whirling around the Games for a long time. Should the Commonwealth Games be scrapped? Anju Bobby George and Dr. Heena Sidhu discuss the question in a conversation moderated by Uthra Ganesan . Edited excerpts:
That won’t happen with multiple venues. Shooting is being cut out from many events, including the Asian Games, as squad limits force federations to select athletes playing two or more events rather than bringing top rankers from every discipline. Additionally, issues such as European restrictions on lead pellets, and negative perceptions tied to mass shootings create hurdles. Shooting is considered spectator-unfriendly, as stands are empty in places such as Glasgow. However, Indian spectators want to see it. If we want to save the sport, countries with fan demand must host it. How do you view challenges around hosting multi-sport events and squad restrictions? Anju Bobby George: Actually, that is what countries are doing now — like the FIFA World Cup, it was held in three different countries. On a smaller scale, we do it for the National Games, where we conduct different sports in different cities or districts. But personally for me, you miss the beauty of the Games that way. Those who are coming to watch the events will have to fly all over. When it’s together, they can just watch shooting one day, go and watch athletics the next day, day after that go for wrestling and so on. India should use this opportunity to make shooting accessible and engaging for fans. By taking sports seriously and building proper engagement, India can build a strong sporting ecosystem for the future.
Because shooting returns after 12 years, heena Sidhu: I am looking forward to 2030. Because after that, we had really good infrastructure that helped us launch our athletes for the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, if you think about the last CWG we hosted in 2010, it was a defining moment for Indian sports.