New Delhi: The 70-odd-member Indian contingent that will participate in the Sydney Olympics is unlikely to come back with any greater achievement than the last Games in 1996 in Atlanta, where Leander Paes won the bronze in tennis.
Apart from the hockey team, the women weightlifters and the proven tennis duo of Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, there is very little to hope from other disciplines. India are participating in 12 disciplines.
Since the 1900 Olympics in Paris, where Norman Pritchard won two silver medals, in 200m and 200m hurdles, India have won only two individual medals in the Olympic Games- wrestler K D Jadhav won a bronze in 57 kg freestyle (bantamweight) in the 1952 Helsinki Games (Japan's Shohachi Ishii won the gold), and Paes landed a bronze in Atlanta in tennis, after losing to eventual winner Andre Agassi.
Despite Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Suresh Kalmadi's assertion that India wanted to "make a mark" in Sydney, the fact remains that most of the athletes going to Sydney are below World standard.
The preparations have also not been ideal. The athletics team, for instance, is yet to be finalised as the August 25 deadline for submitting the athletes' list draws near. One official said about 32 athletes were expected to go to Sydney, but no one is sure how many will eventually go.
In Sydney, hockey gives India a realistic chance of winning a medal - not necessarily a gold. Besides, Paes-Bhupathi in tennis and women weightlifters Karnam Malleswari (69kg class) and Sanamacha Chanu (53kg) also raise hopes of a podium finish.
"I am sure Malleswari (who lifted 225kg in 63kg class at the Asian Championship in Osaka in May) can lift up to 240 kg, which is a medal-winning weight," said Balbir Singh Bhatia, government nominee on the selection panel. Bhatia also expects a lot from Chanu, who lifted 197kg at the same Asian Championship.
It is also possible that Anwer Sultan (trap), Abhinav Bindra (air rifle) and Anjali Vedpathak (air rifle women and sport rifle 3 position), who all have made it to Sydney either through wild card or quota place, may find the bull's eye.
"They (shooters) have some chance, but it all depends on how they shoot on a particular day. Luck is an important factor," Baljit Singh Sethi, secretary-general of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), said.
Sultan is at present training and competing in local competitions in Italy, while Bindra and Pathak are in Bangalore, preparing under national coach Professor Sunny Thomas.
Hockey, of course, remains the biggest hope, if only for the fact that the sentiments of most Indians are attached with the "national game." Coach Vasudevan Baskaran has not promised a gold, but has assured of a good show from his boys.
India's group rivals are Australia, Argentina, South Korea, Spain and Poland in the 12-team competition, and they will have to win the first match (against Argentina) to put the campaign on the right track. The road is tough, but the players are fit and ready to take on any challenge.
In tennis, the progress of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi will depend on how well they can combine after the long separation (the two played together last November in the World Doubles).
Paes, who has also got a wild card for the singles event, is not as much a medal prospect in that category as in the doubles. The bronze medal winner at Atlanta will find it difficult to emulate his 1996 feat as he will face a top class field of 64. The fact that he has just recovered after a considerably long lay off due to a wrist injury will also be crucial to his prospects.
The boxers may progress a couple of rounds, at the most. "The boxers should do well. But it also depends on the draw," Indian Amateur Boxing Federation secretary A K Mattoo, who is also the chef de mission of the Indian contingent, said.
The four boxers, who all have qualified, have recently returned from a training-cum-competition stint in Cuba where they are said to have fared well.
In athletics, badminton, judo, rowing, table tennis, swimming, shooting and wrestling, India do not stand much of a chance of winning a medal.
Apart from the hockey team, the women weightlifters and the proven tennis duo of Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, there is very little to hope from other disciplines. India are participating in 12 disciplines.
Since the 1900 Olympics in Paris, where Norman Pritchard won two silver medals, in 200m and 200m hurdles, India have won only two individual medals in the Olympic Games- wrestler K D Jadhav won a bronze in 57 kg freestyle (bantamweight) in the 1952 Helsinki Games (Japan's Shohachi Ishii won the gold), and Paes landed a bronze in Atlanta in tennis, after losing to eventual winner Andre Agassi.
Despite Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Suresh Kalmadi's assertion that India wanted to "make a mark" in Sydney, the fact remains that most of the athletes going to Sydney are below World standard.
The preparations have also not been ideal. The athletics team, for instance, is yet to be finalised as the August 25 deadline for submitting the athletes' list draws near. One official said about 32 athletes were expected to go to Sydney, but no one is sure how many will eventually go.
In Sydney, hockey gives India a realistic chance of winning a medal - not necessarily a gold. Besides, Paes-Bhupathi in tennis and women weightlifters Karnam Malleswari (69kg class) and Sanamacha Chanu (53kg) also raise hopes of a podium finish.
"I am sure Malleswari (who lifted 225kg in 63kg class at the Asian Championship in Osaka in May) can lift up to 240 kg, which is a medal-winning weight," said Balbir Singh Bhatia, government nominee on the selection panel. Bhatia also expects a lot from Chanu, who lifted 197kg at the same Asian Championship.
It is also possible that Anwer Sultan (trap), Abhinav Bindra (air rifle) and Anjali Vedpathak (air rifle women and sport rifle 3 position), who all have made it to Sydney either through wild card or quota place, may find the bull's eye.
"They (shooters) have some chance, but it all depends on how they shoot on a particular day. Luck is an important factor," Baljit Singh Sethi, secretary-general of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), said.
Sultan is at present training and competing in local competitions in Italy, while Bindra and Pathak are in Bangalore, preparing under national coach Professor Sunny Thomas.
Hockey, of course, remains the biggest hope, if only for the fact that the sentiments of most Indians are attached with the "national game." Coach Vasudevan Baskaran has not promised a gold, but has assured of a good show from his boys.
India's group rivals are Australia, Argentina, South Korea, Spain and Poland in the 12-team competition, and they will have to win the first match (against Argentina) to put the campaign on the right track. The road is tough, but the players are fit and ready to take on any challenge.
In tennis, the progress of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi will depend on how well they can combine after the long separation (the two played together last November in the World Doubles).
Paes, who has also got a wild card for the singles event, is not as much a medal prospect in that category as in the doubles. The bronze medal winner at Atlanta will find it difficult to emulate his 1996 feat as he will face a top class field of 64. The fact that he has just recovered after a considerably long lay off due to a wrist injury will also be crucial to his prospects.
The boxers may progress a couple of rounds, at the most. "The boxers should do well. But it also depends on the draw," Indian Amateur Boxing Federation secretary A K Mattoo, who is also the chef de mission of the Indian contingent, said.
The four boxers, who all have qualified, have recently returned from a training-cum-competition stint in Cuba where they are said to have fared well.
In athletics, badminton, judo, rowing, table tennis, swimming, shooting and wrestling, India do not stand much of a chance of winning a medal.
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