London Olympics and Team of Pakistan

Mary Kom, the daughter of an Indian farmer is among her countrys best hopes for a medal in the London Olympics. But just weeks before the event got underway; she faced a seemingly insurmountable challenge. The 46-kilogram boxer found that her usual weight category had been replaced so that she would have to put on an extra six kilograms while training in the lead up to the Olympics. Lucky for Mary and her country, Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ), a not-for-profit supported by the Indian corporate sector stepped in to find and fund a suitable international expert to help the athlete get into the weight category of choice, without jeopardising her training. OGQ, GoSports Foundation and Mittal Champions Trust are just some of the entities supported by Indian companies that have churned out billions of rupees to help prepare Indias athletes for the Games. This support is besides the fund of more than Rs.200 billion set aside by the Indian Government to train 730 athletes; arranging more than 130 foreign trips for them in addition to bringing in international trainers and experts during their preparations for the Games. Other countries also spare no expense in preparing their Olympic hopefuls. Canada spent an average of $83,000 per athlete on its Olympics squad, while the United States of America set aside over $275,000 for each of its athletes. Kenya, which has put together a delegation of about 80 athletes for the Games, spent over $1.5 million on their preparations. By comparison, Pakistans ambitions for the London Olympics appear modest from the start. Besides the Field Hockey team, less than half a dozen athletes are in London, all of them on wild cards. The departure of the Olympic squad drew no crowds or live TV crews and companies here, be they multinationals or nationals, have chosen to ignore the countrys representatives at the Games, instead of sponsoring them. It is a fallacy that local athletes lack the requisite talent and skills to compete at the global level. The 3 gold, 3 silver and 4 bronze medals that Pakistanis have bagged in past Olympics bear testament that the feat has been accomplished before and can be achieved again. It is clear that it is not the athletes but the government and the private sector of Pakistan that have lost the will to excel and to persevere in the face of adversity. The Pakistani athlete meanwhile, appears the very personification of these Olympic ideals.