After a gap of three years since a Covid-deferred Tokyo Olympics was held in 2021, the world will be eagerly waiting to watch the athletes from across the world on a medal hunt in Paris in various disciplines.
Sports is a platform for even some of the smaller nations to display their strength and skill and flex their soft power muscle through their achievements in the sporting arena.
Meanwhile, Pakistan, once regarded as a sporting powerhouse in the South Asia region, is slowly fading away from its glory and today the tiny representation in the Olympics is a sign of its degrading state.
Reduced from Tokyo where 10 athletes participated, in Paris only seven sportsmen will march out during the opening ceremony, carrying the hopes of a nation which is waiting for an Olympic medal for 32 years.
The last time Pakistan had a podium finish in the Olympics was in 1992 when the once dominating hockey team had won the Bronze medal.
Since then, it has continued to disappoint its citizens with athletes struggling to even qualify for the grand event.
Even the famed hockey team has not qualified for the Olympics for the past three editions.
The absence of the hockey team is also a reason behind the slimmer contingent participation in Paris.
The only medal hope on which Pakistan can bank is Javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem who qualified directly for the games.
Shooter Kishmala Talat, Pakistan’s first markswoman to qualify for the Games and who won bronze at the Asian Games last year, gives the nation, which has so far won 10 medals since 1948, an outside chance.
In its editorial, The Express Tribune said only a representation of seven athletes in the iconic sporting event of the world is ‘astoundingly inadequate for a nation of 245 million people’.
“The limited number of athletes participating in the Paris Games cements concerns about the country’s overall sports development and investment in grooming and nurturing talent,” read the editorial.
The slow and steady rise of India and a contrasting fall of Pakistan on the sporting turf is quite clear in recent years. This dissimilarity also points to the disparity in the vision of the governments of the two neighbouring countries.
The leading Pakistani daily urged authorities to invest in comprehensive sports development programs that identify, train and support athletes.
“This would not only provide greater opportunities for Pakistani athletes to compete and excel on a global stage, but also reflect the country’s commitment to sports and athletic development,” read the editorial.
Pakistan’s Dawn News voiced similar thoughts about the country’s sporting future in its Opinion which read: “For a country that once prided itself on its athletes, it is a sign of how fast matters have declined. It also indicates the lack of a proper national sports policy or framework. Federations for each sport run on their own, most claiming they are only answerable to their respective global bodies and not to the government.”
The newspapers said athletes are complaining about lack of fund allocation for sporting events and this issue should be urgently addressed.
“The government should work with the federations to formulate a national sports code to ensure greater participation and more medal chances,” Dawn News Editorial said.
In contrast to Pakistan, India has gradually grown as a sporting nation over the years and shaking off its poor show in the past, the neighbouring nation has put up a stronger performance in the past few Olympics.
This year, India is sending 117 athletes to compete in the many battles on the sporting field.
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