Boria Majumdar at the Stade de France
Between August 7 and August 8, 2024 most newspapers in the country carried details of the Vinesh Phogat disqualification as front-page news. This was the main Olympic story of the Games from the Indian perspective. The Games are all wrong, and the men and women who run it are worse. Not so after August 8. On August 9, the day after Neeraj Chopra won his second consecutive Olympic medal, every newspaper will have pages dedicated to him. For the next few days, it will be Neeraj and hockey. Television channels will do the same.
Neeraj, one more time, has helped Indian sport and brought it back on track. Every Neeraj milestone is written about and televised, and every person connected to Neeraj is interviewed. Vinesh’s disqualification and Antim Panghal’s weight botch-up are negative stories, and the exact antithesis of what Neeraj stands for and embodies. And negativity stands no chance with Neeraj as an opponent.
Full editions of newspapers and magazines can be dedicated to Neeraj, and day-long conclaves organised. One man has brought the country to a standstill with his success at back-to-back Olympic Games.
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Exclusive 🚨@Neeraj_chopra1 opens up on his performance in #Paris2024, his competition with Gold medalist @ArshadOlympian1, the 90m mark and more! @RohanDC98#Olympics #ParisOlympics2024 #Olympics2024Paris #NeerajChopra #ArshadNadeem @Limca_Official pic.twitter.com/nEsiITcBwo
— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) August 9, 2024
This truth is far more powerful than the disillusionment over India’s many fourth-place finishes. We have been used to failure in India for the longest time. We are used to the narrative of failure and discrimination. We are used to missing out and not winning medals at the Olympics. We are used to our only individual Olympic gold medal winner being called Avinash and not Abhinav by the head of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) days after he had won in Beijing in 2008.
The Neeraj narrative is different. It is a story of dominance and assertion, of winning and achievement. It is positive rather than negative, overtly national as opposed to covertly anti-national. Neeraj is India’s answer to questions posed at us, a retort to every kind of probe in the sporting realm.
How do we figure out the enormity of an athlete winning back-to-back Olympic medals in athletics? How do we rate such an achievement? If there aren’t any sporting comparisons in India, how does this accomplishment stand in relation to greatness achieved in other sports? Such comparisons, which are a fancy of every sports fan’s imagination, help in understanding the symbolism of the feat. The nearest comparisons are all from the field of athletics. Bob Beamon’s 1968 long jump world record that stood for over two decades or, more recently, Usain Bolt’s multiple world-record-breaking 100m runs serve as a good index.
The first word to describe these is ‘unbelievable’. Neeraj winning an Olympic gold, a Diamond League title, a world championship crown, Asian Games gold and now an Olympic silver is similar. Babe Ruth’s home runs, Mark Spitz’ seven gold-medal-winning performances in Munich – subsequently bettered by Michael Phelps in Beijing – and Nadia Commaneci’s perfect tens at Montreal are comparisons that help spice up the debate over where Neeraj is as an athlete. It is the pinnacle of achievement in sport, the very top which appears inconceivable to start with.
Now to throw in a few more yardsticks into the mix. The pressure of millions cheering in anticipation every time he ran in to throw the last few years, and an ordinary Olympic campaign forcing him to carry the burden almost alone. We are now talking of the Neeraj Chopra phenomenon. No sporting great has overcome so many challenges. Mondo Duplantis or Noah Lyles have never had to deal with the expectations of millions. They have never performed at a Games where a loss is viewed almost as a criminal conviction, with millions back home sitting in judgment. Most athletes here in Paris play a sport. Neeraj is part of a passion play, one that captivates the world’s most populous nation. Yes, he is the greatest. The best Indian athlete ever.
Also Read: Neeraj silver is a landmark, not a setback