India's 81-strong contingent on a mission!
Goalie Bharat Kumar Chetri of India gestures during practice ahead of the 2012 London Olympic Games at the Olympic Park on July 23, 2012 in London, England.
With only 48 hours left for the most awaited event i.e. the London Olympics 2012 to begin, all eyes would be on the 10,500 (approx) athletes who will be taking part. India has sent a contingent that comprises of 81 deserving candidates, who have been given the responsibility of making the country proud, and returning back home with their heads held high. The event, which is set to begin on 27th July, will spread its charm till 12th August.
Though the Olympics haven’t got India the expected result till date, and India have only won a total of 20 medals, this is a golden opportunity to make this tally go higher. The chosen athletes this year, from an Indian perspective, are among the best in the world when it comes to events like boxing, wrestling, badminton, shooting, and also hockey, though this isn’t a team of the same calibre which won gold medals at the Olympics consecutively.
The selected 81 athletes for this Olympics from India will whole-heartedly take part in the events for which they have been selected. This time, we have 58 men, and 23 women taking part in 13 sports out of the 26 sports that are going to be held. This team of 81 members consists of some well-known people like Vikas Gowda and Krishna Poonia for discus throw along with many others in Athletics. Saina Nehwal, Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponnappa, and a few more in badminton. Mary Kom, Vijender Singh, Manoj Kumar, Jai Bhagwan, and many more in Boxing, where India hopes to win many medals.
We also have our hockey team led by Bharat Chetri, and coached by Michael Nobbs. Then we have Abhinav Bindra, the lone Olympic gold medal winner for India in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Gagan Narang, Ronjan Sodhi, along with many more in the sport of shooting. Leander Paes, Sania Mirza, Mahesh Bhupathi, and a few more will represent India in tennis. We also have Sushil Kumar in wrestling, who will also be our flag bearer during the opening ceremony on 27th July.
With many hopes on their shoulders, there is definitely a chance for the chosen 81 to make a mark, and return with a smile. So we can only pray for our heroes to do well, and wish them all the best, so that they play their best game. At the end of the day, winning or losing might not matter, but if these guys can make a mark, then it will be just two words for us – mission accomplished!