- Decades ago, when P.T. Usha travelled by the Madras-Mangalore Mail, her employers, the Railways, permitted an unscheduled stop at her hometown Payyoli in North Kerala.
- Such was the respect she garnered for her medal-winning exploits at the Asian level while the collective heart-break she bequeathed in narrowly missing a bronze in the 400m hurdles at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics is remembered even today.
- After she retired from track-and-field, she evolved as a coach, groomed fresh talent and kept an eye on the grassroots.
- Her latest appointment as president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) comes with a surfeit of goodwill. Additionally, it busts the patriarchy inherent in many sports hierarchies across India.
- She becomes the first woman president of the IOA, a post she was elected to unopposed. In a sense the IOA’s hand was forced as factionalism drew censure from the International Olympic Committee and there were whispers of a ban.
- A change of guard from the earlier well-entrenched lobby with political links was inevitable and Usha was seen as the ideal candidate.
- Already a nominated Rajya Sabha member, Usha’s latest sporting elevation was seen as an organic progress.
- Having handled many batons while running her famous relays, Usha will find the latest one perhaps the toughest to manoeuvre.
- As the umbrella organisation for sports bodies in India, the IOA has to deal with sister associations lost in dissidence.
- Stadiums become white elephants, leased out for housing loan expos or music concerts. Age-fudging and doping are grim realities as young athletes, seeking jobs, chase medals at the zonal, age-group and national levels.
- Medals often secure a career opening in public sector units, banks and a few corporates and Usha is aware of this.
- She and her team of administrators that includes sportspersons and other officials, need to crack the whip.
- For all the political jostling that happens during the elections, men and women representing opposite ideologies shake hands and become entrenched in sports administration, seeking brownie points and fame.
- The Government’s leaning on the soft power of sports, the Sports Authority of India’s initiatives and corporate-backed academies have changed the landscape.
- India is beginning to aspire for golds beyond the Asian realm and Neeraj Chopra and Abhinav Bindra’s exploits in the Olympics are a pointer that the skill-sets are there and if support is provided, medals with better lustre can be secured.
- With India hoping to bid for the Olympics in the 2030s, Usha and her team are expected to create a road map for that too. The Payyoli Express has a tough challenge ahead.
SOURCE: THE HINDU, THE ECONOMIC TIMES, PIB