“We are preparing for the Paralympics also, so I’ve had no time to breathe,” Viren Rasquinha says on the phone.
The former Indian hockey captain has had a busy many weeks. As the CEO of OGQ (Olympic Gold Quest), a non-profit started by Prakash Padukone and Geet Sethi in 2001, Rasquinha was involved in the preparation of some of the Indian athletes before they left for Tokyo.
During the Games, he did television commentary. Now that the event is over and India have returned with seven medals, the country’s best ever Olympic showing, one expected Rasquinha to be in a state of sweet exhaustion.
No such luck for the 40-year-old. The Paralympics are coming up on August 24. Also, his joy over India’s display is tempered as he feels we could have won more medals.
“We did very well and it’s great to see the public sentiment (for the Olympic standouts), but from my seat I always have to look critically where we can get better,” Rasquinha says.
In this interview, he speaks about Tokyo 2020, and what India can do to ensure more podium finishes at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
From your unique vantage point as a former Olympian, ISB (Indian School of Business) MBA and OGQ CEO, how do you see Indian hockey as a property, in terms of commercial prospects as well as potential for medals?
The emotional attachment (of the Indian people) with hockey is tremendous. It has always been so. Everywhere I went in the last 20 years, people would ask me, ‘When will India win an Olympic medal in hockey again?’
Now that the team has performed, not just the men’s but the women’s also – to me the women’s performance was the story of Tokyo 2020 - the emotional outpouring of support has been enormous.
The goodwill people have for hockey has a lot of value. I think if we get consistent results of this level, if we manage to create role models, I think hockey as a property can skyrocket. How much and how exactly, I don’t know, as my expertise is in trying to get athletes to perform and not brand management. We are a not-for-profit organization. We are supported through CSR, not through sponsorship.
What were the takeaways for you from India’s performance in Tokyo?
In modern hockey, current form and fitness is everything. I think both Indian hockey teams (men’s and women’s) were selected based not on reputations but form and fitness. The men’s team bridged that gap (between fitness levels with rivals) in the last ten years, but the biggest difference in the women’s team from five years ago and now is their strength and fitness levels. That is a huge takeaway, fitness is everything.
The second is teamwork. Even in individual sport, it may be P.V. Sindhu on the court but there is an army behind the scenes responsible for her playing well.
By teamwork I also mean SAI (Sports Authority of India), the national sports federations, organisations like OGQ working together. A big takeaway from Tokyo was all the various stakeholders worked with team spirit and cooperation.
Take for example, Mirabai Chanu. SAI, through their TOPS scheme, the Indian Weightlifting Federation and OGQ worked closely over the last four or five years to ensure Mira got the best support, whether it was training, foreign exposure, equipment, nutrition, sports psychology. Who paid more, who paid less is immaterial. What’s important is for all stakeholders to work together.
Last but not the least, the mental strength that some of our athletes showed to handle the pressure of the Olympics. If you look at the hockey team, historically we’ve been known to concede goals in the last few minutes. But this time it was actually a role reversal.
I like Graham Reid’s philosophy of ‘the next step’. When India lost to Australia 7-1, they thought of the next step and won four matches in a row.
When they lost in the semis, psychologically it can really hit you hard to lose in the last four. But they were mentally and physically ready for the next match.
In the bronze medal match against Germany, we were down 1-3, and won from that position. I have never seen that happening in all my years in hockey.
Creditable as Tokyo was, how does India do even better at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where there could be bigger expectations from the hockey team, for one, and therefore more pressure?
Pressure is a privilege. If people are expecting gold, that is great. To be in this position takes years of effort, by the federation, by SAI, by players and by coaches. I don’t think we should worry about the pressure. We should focus on the process, and ensure there is healthy competition within the team for places. No one should take their place for granted. It’s also important for the country to support the team through ups and downs. It means a lot.
I think the way India played in Tokyo will inspire many young players to believe there is a career in hockey. The fruits of this performance will be seen in the hundreds and hundreds of kids who will join academies all over the country. Little boys and girls in Punjab, Jharkhand, Haryana, Coorg, Bhopal, Jhansi, Mumbai or Khadki will be playing and dreaming they will become the next Manpreet Singh or P.R. Sreejesh.
But we have to win regularly, finally it’s ‘jo jeeta wohi Sikander’. We can’t rely on a one-off success.
Historically, corporations have found it hard to work with non-cricket sports administrators in India. Has Indian officialdom gotten better, or do attitudes still need to change?
Some of the federations have really improved. SAI has been top-class over the last five or six years. Although our shooters didn't get medals, the shooting federation is well-organized. The hockey federation is one of the best.
There are some 65 government recognized federations. There will always be some that are good and some bad. I think the federations of top 14 sports in the country are definitely doing a better job. Of course, there is always scope for improvement.
Narinder Batra is the president of the FIH (the international hockey federation), along with being the IOA (Indian Olympic Association) chief. Does that bring advantages to Indian hockey?
I don’t know about that. What I can say is Mr Batra is an excellent administrator. No one works as hard as him, and he knows the ins and outs of administering sport. He has almost single-handedly brought so many international hockey events to India. Like cricket, hockey also is a sport where the money and commercial opportunities are only in India.
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