Adil Najam
10.10.10 turned out to be lucky for Pakistan at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Well, kind of.
For the first time in 40 years, Pakistan will be coming home with gold medals in Wrestling. Two actually. With Azhar Hussain and Muhammad Inam winning top spots in the 55kg and 84kg freestyles. The last time Pakistan won a wrestling gold at the Commonwealth games was in 1970 at Edinburugh, when we came back with four wrestling golds.
However, in field hockey – which has long been Pakistan’s staple sport at such competitions – the green shirts lost big time (and played badly) against traditional rivals, India.
Overall, Pakistan’s performance has been dismal. Not just in hockey but overall. From the word go and from the ‘flag carrying Minister’ to the early demise of the Pakistan tennis team in which many had invested (unfair) hopes. However, the wrestlers have done well and done us proud. Here are some details from The Express Tribune:
Azhar Hussain of Pakistan won his country’s first Commonwealth Games wrestling gold for 40 years, beating Ebikewenimo Welson of Nigeria while wrestler Muhammad Inam won the second gold for Pakistan on Sunday. Hussain gave an impressive performance of clever footwork and brute strength to take Welson out by a fall in the second session of the 55kg freestyle final.
“We don’t have the proper Greco-Roman coaches, but still we went for it and for the country’s sake we got the silver in the Greco-Roman and now gold in the freestyle catergory as well,” Pakistan’s head freestyle coach MH Omar said.
Pakistan had not taken a Games wrestling title since they won four golds in Edinburgh 1970. “Like Sushil Kumar is for India, now the same Azhar Hussain is for Pakistan — a champion,” Omar said.
Hussain had earlier disappointed the partisan crowd by beating India’s Anil Kumar in a tense quarterfinal. Kumar gave the loyal home support something to cheer about when he took the bronze, beating Craig Pilling of Wales 3-0. He said: “Bronze is good but I wanted gold. So I’m not at all happy and satisfied. I prepared for gold at these Games for at least four or five years.
“Last night I didn’t get adequate sleep. That’s why I was tired and couldn’t perform 100 per cent. I wasn’t feeling very well. I had some stomach problems. I felt like throwing up all the time.”
Muhammad Inam of Pakistan won his team’s second Commonwealth Games wrestling title within an hour on Sunday – after the country had gone 40 years without a gold.
Inam was outplayed and overpowered by Kumar in the first session but, spurred on by teammate Azhar Hussain’s victory in the 55kg final, the big wrestler found the inspiration to overcome the favourite and the chants of a partisan home crowd.
Inam won the next two sessions by the narrowest of margins to take the bout 4-3.
The two wins in wrestling may not be a big deal for the 2010 Commonwealth Games as a whole or for Pakistan sports, but for wrestling in Pakistan this is a good omen. Like so many other sports, wrestling was been treated shabbily in Pakistan and receives very little official support, and no public support at all. One hopes that may change. It will be good if it does.
Kudos to the wrestlers!! They are the true sporting story of the year for Pakistan. They are the true champs!! I hope we make a big deal out of it and go all out and celebrate their victory. Lets roll out the red carpet when they return.
But, I know we won’t. They wouldn’t get even a fraction of the popularity and fawning that cricket or tennis got. As I have said in the past, we don’t celebrate the true winners. Look where all the hoopla for Aisam got us. By making a big deal of certain sportsmen prematurely, we completely limit their hunger to do bigger and better things.
Ahmed
Adil Sb., did you know that Inam is an MBA student in Lahore.
Wrestling, actually, should be a natural fit for Pakistan. The challenge is establishing facilities, coaches etc. for Greeko-Roman since that is what the competitions are about.
I have long believed that Pakistan should invest broadly in multiple sports. The national goodwill that is created by these things, abroad and also at home, are significant. Just look at India and its medal haul. They are on their way to changing their sports profile.
Well done our Wrestlers.
Yes in the hockey it is disappointing. But predictable as there is no professionalism left in our sports.
I remember an event which I want to share with you all. In the 1981-82 Asian games which were held in Delhi Pakistan beat India in the hockey final 7-1. I travelled to India on the last day of the events. I was travelling from Delhi to Kanpur on a train alone. As I did not have any reservation I just sat in one of the compartments. There were some young boys and girls coming back from the games in the same compartment. I still remember their comments about that hockey match. Some were hilarious but all of them very disappointed about their teams performance (so I did not tell them I was from Pakistan). But one comment I remember that one of the boys said that it looks like our (Indian) goal keeper had taken money to let so many goals. How now we are disappointed with our team’s performance. How time have changed. We are going downhill and India is striding forward in all sphere of life.