‘Rural athletes take up sports as winning gives them job security’

Boxer Manoj Kumar, who won bronze in CWG this year, says that in most states, government jobs are given only after an athlete has won a medal, but in Haryana, even future medal contenders are identified early on and given jobs

‘Emphasis on physical strength gives more boxers and

wrestlers

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Sangram Singh

‘With more winners, young kids have more idols to follow’

Rohtak-based boxer Amit Phangal, who bagged silver in light flyweight category at CWG, says that more winners from Haryana means more idols for the kids to emulate

‘Prize money to medallists is the highest in Haryana’

‘Haryana’s athletes have greater self-confidence now’

Former world champion shooter Jaspal Rana, who is currently coaching Indian junior shooters, says that Haryana has also developed new shooting ranges, as part of making way for people to take up sports different from the traditionally strong disciplines like boxing or wrestling

As per the 2011 Census , with just over 2.5 crore people, Haryana’s share in India’s population is a mere 2%. But athletes from Haryana have contributed to one-third of all the medals won by India, including nine out of the 26 golds in CWG. If Haryana was a separate country, it would still be eighth on the 2018 CWG medal tally, behind sporting powerhouses like Australia, England, India, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and Wales. The episode involving about a dozen of Haryana’s medal-winners from CWG boycotting the state felicitation ceremony over prize money might have soured the post-win festivities a bit, but the fact remains that over the last few years, the state has dethroned its neighbour Punjab as the nursery for Indian sports. Haryana has always been a big contributor in terms of India’s medal haul at major competitions (three of India’s fifteen individual Olympic medals are from the state), but this time, the domination has been unprecedented. Athletes and coaches attribute this domination to a range of factors, including a supportive administration with a concrete sports policy, abundance of idols for youngsters to follow, and greater self-belief in the current crop of athletes.The sports policy, which was started by the state government in 2015, was recently amended to include cushier jobs for international medal winners. The new provision in the policy states that Olympic medallists – starting from 2020 – will be given jobs in the Haryana Civil Services (HCS) or Haryana Police Service (HPS). Other states also offer jobs to their medal winners but do not have a set policy on what job is to be awarded. Mostly, such decisions are taken arbitrarily after a win. But jobs in Haryana are not just for those who win medals, but also for the ones with future medal prospects. Kaithal-born boxer Manoj Kumar, who won a bronze in the welterweight category at Gold Coast, says, “People in smaller towns of Haryana are not very financially strong, so they enter sports with the hope of a government job. In other states, jobs are given after an athlete has performed at the national level and won medals, but in Haryana, at least recently, even future medal contenders are identified early on and given jobs. That is how many athletes are able to continue with the sport. Other teams like Services and Railways also scout in Haryana because they know yahan talent hai. Even in Railways, we have more sportspersons from Haryana than any other state now.”Boxer Manoj Kumar, who won bronze in CWG this year, says that in most states, government jobs are given only after an athlete has won a medal, but in Haryana, even future medal contenders are identified early on and given jobsTraditionally, Haryana has always been a nursery for boxers and wrestlers. It is in these sports of strength that athletes from the state have always won India international acclaim. In Gold Coast too, boxing and wrestling comprised 15 of the 22 medals won by Haryana. Wrestler Sangram Singh says that it stems from the state’s culture that emphasizes physical strength, particularly in the rural areas. “Bete tandarust hone chahiye. We don’t care about whether we have a big house or several cars or not. That is where our physical strength comes from, and that is why Haryana people have excelled in physical sports like wrestling and boxing. Aur ab toh ladke kya, ladkiyan bhi mazboot hoti hain,” the reigning Commonwealth Heavyweight Professional Champion had said last year.Commonwealth Heavyweight Professional Champion Sangram Singh had said that the reason athletes from Haryana have excelled in boxing and wrestling is that people from the state care the most about their physical strengthIt was after Vijender Singh’s bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics that an entire generation of youngsters took up boxing in the state. Athletes say that having more champions from the state will make this process spread even faster. Rohtak boxer Amit Panghal, who won silver in light flyweight category at Gold Coast, tells us, “Kehte hain ki Haryana ke khaane mein jaan hai. That is why we have had so many champions in boxing and wrestling from here. And when a lot of people from the state start getting success, the younger lot feels they can do it too. They have idols from their state that they can emulate.”Rohtak-based boxer Amit Phangal, who bagged silver in light flyweight category at CWG, says that more winners from Haryana means more idols for the kids to emulateSome former athletes say that what has changed in Haryana is that individual success has given rise to administrative support, chief of which is the highest prize money for winners, which acts as a great incentive for athletes. Arjuna Awardee boxer Akhil Kumar says, “The present crop of athletes and their performances that we see are largely because of the state government’s policies that have been in place for about three-four years now.” The Haryana government’s cash prizes for international medals are easily the highest in the country, which act as a great incentive for athletes. Sample this – an Olympic gold medallist from Haryana gets `6 crore. In comparison, the central government gives `75 lakh for an Olympic gold while the Indian Railways awards such medallists `1 crore. Commonwealth medallists get `1.5 crore, `75 lakh, and `50 lakh for gold, silver, and bronze respectively from the Haryana state government, which is the highest in any state. Tamil Nadu awarded `50 lakh to the 2018 Commonwealth gold medallists, as did Uttar Pradesh. At the other end of the spectrum are Punjab and Delhi, which give their CWG gold medallists `16 lakh and `14 lakh respectively. The prize money for an Asian Games gold given by Haryana is also five times as much as any other state.Boxer Akhil Kumar says that the performances of the present crop of athletes from Haryana are largely so because of the state government’s policiesAn interesting feature of this year’s CWG haul by Haryana’s athletes was that even as the state did well in the traditionally strong disciplines like boxing and wrestling, new stars emerged in sports the state hasn’t had a rich history in. The record of India’s youngest Commonwealth medallist was broken thrice in these games – all three times by a Haryana athlete. It began in weightlifting, as 18-year-old Deepak Lather from Shadipur won bronze in the 69 kg category. Then, the shooting prodigies took over. Of the three medals won by Haryana in shooting, two were by teenagers – 16-year-old Manu Bhaker from Jhajjar and 15-year-old Anish Bhanwala from Karnal. Former world champion shooter Jaspal Rana, who is currently coaching the Indian junior shooters , says, “In the recent years, Haryana has developed new shooting ranges and that helps because it is a sport that requires investment.”Apart from shooting, Haryana also struck gold on the track and field as 22-year-old Panipat boy Neeraj Chopra won a gold in javelin throw. Gurgaon-based athletics coach Raj Yadav, says, “There is greater belief in Haryana’s kids now. Having seen boxers and wrestlers succeed, the track and field athletes believe they can win too now. And that belief in self is important in big competitions if you want to win. That talent was always there, but now, players are more confident.” However, with the Asian Games in August and the Olympics less than two years away, tougher challenges lie ahead for Haryana’s Commonwealth champions. If Gold Coast is anything to go by, the nation will certainly be looking at Haryanvi boys and girls to add weight to India’s medal tallies at the major international sporting competitions in the years to come.Former world champion shooter Jaspal Rana, who is currently coaching Indian junior shooters, says that Haryana has also developed new shooting ranges, as part of making way for people to take up sports different from the traditionally strong disciplines like boxing or wrestling