Athletics?

With the C.W.G. drawing closer, our media is on fire. Since the international spotlight is on India, they figure that if they flame India hard enough, they might just get quoted in an international paper or news channel. Well, whatever works for them. I’d give my opinion on the media’s response, but I’m too busy struggling with a much more fundamental question regarding athletics.

Why in the world would anyone care about a bunch of people wearing tights perform tasks which a one eyed, brain dead robo-monkey could be programmed to do? Sports I respect, because they all (even the dullest of them all, cricket) involve a certain degree of strategy. They require an individual to work with his team and successfully pull off a strategy to win. They do have a requirement of physical ability, but to reach the top, a team needs to understand the game, not just pass a mark on a physical scale that divides teams into the first, second and third place. Then, there’s athletics.

If an event relies solely on physical prowess, the only way over the finish line is by raising your body’s capability beyond that of your rivals; be it through practice or enhancements. And as almost all students know, hard work just doesn't cut it, not when the competition uses unfair means. I'm not saying that football and basketball players don't resort to doping, because they do. What I'm saying is that physical feats can easily be surpassed, records broken in the blink of an eye, by any athlete using other means. Why then, do we praise feats of the body rather than the mind?

An event which glorifies physical ability over mental capability is not something I can pretend to admire. If athletics are appreciated for the excitement, adrenaline rush and entertainment they provide, maybe they could use a fresh dose of entertainment. Imagine Usain Bolt racing a jaguar instead of yet another sprinter: wouldn’t that be so much more fun to watch?