Attitude towards Sports
As the curtain downs on the Olympics at Beijing today, talks were in the air about our achievements in sports. It is definitely not flattering to know that India won the first Gold in individual events in Olympics only this year. That too because the winner’s father is a rich man and sponsored most of his training expenses.
One of my ‘pro-West’ cousin talked about the way the athletes were prepared in West, the facilities they have & the commitment etc. But I’m not sure how he will explain Ethiopia which won 4 Gold 1 Silver & 2 Bronze medals. Anyway I do not doubt their commitment. We seriously need to review how sports is being managed in our country.
Well this post is not directly relevant to Madurai. But this subject is very much in the air here 
We have just two public playgrounds in Madurai. The Race Course & the Arasaradi Railway Ground, which now attracts huge crowd of walkers & joggers who tries to fight off their obesity & bulging belly. But the athletes & players were invariably from not so affluent sections without much exposure on best practices.
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What about school and college grounds? They should improve too.
Yes, they should improve. Popular College & School playgrounds within city were lying either under utilised or mis-used.
Madura college ground is a frequent choice for meetings & religious functions. The UC High school ground is now completely hidden behind shopping complex and a regular prayer venue. It does not serve as playground anymore. Medical college playground exists only in name, and again used only for mela & circus.
We also need open spaces for events other than sports, so that playgrounds can be spared.