Boria Majumdar in Paris
With two days left for the Paralympics to end, it is perhaps time to take stock of what I have learnt over the last 45 days during the Olympics and the Paralympics. How sport continues to teach life lessons, and makes you feel humbled each time you try to get too far ahead of yourself and make predictions. How sport always has a way to surprise you and bring smiles to people’s faces. Finally, and most importantly, how we can all continue to get better and make a difference.
I will highlight my learnings with three specific stories.
First, Sheetal Devi.
I watched Sheetal on the day of her ranking round and was left in awe – 703 was an extraordinary score and her confidence was something I was deeply impressed with. However, what also struck me was her humility. She wasn’t willing to get too far ahead of herself and was keen on staying in the present. That she was right was proved on the day of her individual event. Sheetal lost by a point, and was eliminated. And yet, the smile did not leave her face. She was still the same. “It is sport,” said Sheetal. “We will win and we will lose, but as Matt Stutzman often says, we should be grateful for the fact that we are able to play sport.” These words will stay with me, and I will always be reminded of them when I watch Sheetal in action. In the next two days, Sheetal was on the podium with Rakesh Kumar. With the medal round her neck, she echoed the same sentiment. “We just need to enjoy what we do and be grateful for all we have got,” she said. “If we get frustrated or angry, we will lose focus.”
Life lessons that apply to us all.
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Story two: Sumit Antil
Sumit won another gold medal with a Paralympic record. And yet, he was not happy. “You can only be happy when you have played to potential,” he said. “Medal isn’t the end goal. Excellence is. I know I could have thrown 75 metres. That’s what I would have been happy with. My coach and I had a target in mind and we prepared for it. While the gold medal feels good, anyone will be happy with it, as an athlete I wanted to do my best on the biggest stage of all.”
Soon after he came into the mixed zone, where his coach Arun Kumar was waiting, he put the medal around Arun’s neck as a gesture of appreciation. “Coach Sir has been with me every second in the last two years and has handheld me,” said Sumit. “This is the least I can do to show him my respect.” Yet again, a life lesson for us all, to remember the support we have received from people around and to always be grateful for it.
Lesson three: Bhavnaben Chaudhary
Bhavna might not have won a medal but her story is one of resilience and courage, and the will to play sport come what may. She was beaten at home, and her village panchayat did not want her to play. They literally isolated her and tortured her and tried to coerce her husband and in-laws to make sure she did not play sport. She refused to relent and with the support of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and Coach Sunil Tanwar, not to forget Devendra Jhajharia, pursued her dream of making it to the Paralympics. She is a clear example of what we all can do if we really want something badly.
More than celebrating the medals and the tremendous campaign, I will go back with these life lessons, which will help me chase excellence with greater rigour and focus.
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