Boria Majumdar in Paris
We started planning for the Olympics and Paralympics in late 2022. Budgets, travel plans, hotels and, more importantly, whether it was even feasible for an organisation that was just a year old (then) to think of taking a six or seven-member team to the Olympics and the Paralympics for 50-plus days. Paris is expensive, and money was always an important consideration. The truth is it sounded impossible to start with. But then, we started breaking things down, worked our way round the maze and realised that if we had to do quality coverage of a very different nature, we needed a sizeable team in Paris. And not just for the Olympic Games, but the Paralympics as well.
For us, both were events of equal importance that defined us as a team. At no point did we think that we’d cover the Olympics and go back. The idea was always to stay on and follow our Olympics coverage with some strong work at the Paralympics.
Once the plans were made, it all came down to implementation. To reach out to brands and sponsors, and ask them for support. And the truth is that almost all of them agreed. So, when some media houses suggest that there aren’t any sponsors for the Paralympics and hence they can’t send teams out to Paris, it signifies a failure of their own marketing departments rather than anything else. There is support out there, if you have the will to get it done.
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Once we reached Paris on July 23, the idea was simple. To do as much on-ground coverage in real time as possible. In a media agnostic age, you need to turn things around fast for the consumer. People need to know, and want to know. Buoyed by the success of the Olympics coverage, we went further during the Paralympics. The first call was to ask two of our colleagues to stay behind in Paris and continue with the build-up. There had to be continuity.
A few of us went home and returned within two weeks, and from August 25 onwards, it was round-the-clock coverage. The 29 medals helped hugely, for each is a story. The Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) welcomed the five-member team from RevSportz with open arms, and with few Indian mediapersons present, we became part of the family.
We worked 18-hour days and the team back in India turned things around brilliantly for our readers and viewers. There was appreciation from every quarter and that helped a lot. Most of the athletes loved it. We got messages every single day asking for the videos, links to features and photographs that we had taken of the athletes. One of them said that a photo taken by us had been blown up in his village and used on posters. Links to our stories were sent back to athletes’ villages and people watched the shows together in solidarity. It was just incredible.
When things did not go well like in the mixed recurve archery or with Sheetal Devi’s individual event, we were there to back our athletes. That’s how sport is, and these are all young men and women trying to make a mark.
As I look back on our 50 days in Paris, it seems a miracle come true. We did pull it off. The team did. And it will define us going forward. As founder, I am proud of this team and the work it has done. As one of our gold medallists said to us, “Sir, you all have enriched Indian sport and made us feel privileged. People back home have blessed you all.” That’s vindication of the very best kind.
In media, the work doesn’t stop. As we spend our last day here before leaving for home tomorrow, the team in India has already started work on the Indian Super League (ISL). The Women’s T20 World Cup is also round the corner, and the Asian Champions Trophy hockey has begun. To more coverage, and more stories. Thank you all for the feedback and the support.
Also Read: Paralympic gains must not be forgotten by the media