'Indian athletes have got too many facilities'

Which national record gave you the most satisfaction?

Whenever a man gets the reward for hard work, it obviously brings joy. It is not that I was happy at setting one particular record, though I established four national marks in a single day - 110m hurdles, javelin, decathlon and high jump.

The fact of the matter is that whichever event I took up, I came up trumps as, fortunately or unfortunately, I faced no competition in India. Therefore, winning a particular event gave me no special pleasure; it was expected. Moreover, I never felt the difference in training and competition.

Who was responsible for choosing 100m hurdles for you for the Rome Olympics?

Actually, I had no choice. I could not have done decathlon as I had a problem with my shoulder and elbow. So, ultimately, I had to do the hurdles, and Kovacs also suggested that I concentrate on this event.

Today, when I sit alone and think about those times, I regret not having stopped pursuing decathlon in 1962 itself when I sustained the injuries. I also think had I concentrated on 400m hurdles instead of 110m hurdles, I would have done much better in the Olympics than what I did in 110m hurdles in Rome. No one suggested to me about that at the time.

Also, because neither the government nor the department (Central Reserve Police Force) gave any incentives or motivation; one was supposed to motivate himself and keep going.

How did you motivate yourself?

What is motivation? It is the self-confidence that matters. If someone is practising everyday, he should know better what to do. I, for one, did well because of the training that I did in India as well as abroad and from the meets in which I competed. I was always ready, mentally and physically, for competitions. In short, self-confidence was the motivation for me.

How was your preparation for the Tokyo Olympics?

During my time, there used to be just one camp, which was about three weeks long, and there were just a few meets. If you compared the food that we used to get then, it was no match with today's situation. During my time, the daily diet allowance was a mere Rs 8.

I did not prepare on synthetic tracks as we did not have any. Even the time of 14.02 seconds that I managed in the 110m hurdles was on grass. In fact, synthetic tracks were not even introduced.

I visited Germany, Switzerland and Holland as part of the preparation for Rome. I ran in 10 meets and won all of them. The training I received abroad turned out to be very helpful. Had I not gone abroad, it would have been very difficult for me to do well in Rome.

The athletic federation was responsible for the entire planning for me. What was your diet during championships? My normal diet comprised 12 eggs and six to seven kilograms of milk every day. My father paid for all that. We never used to eat fruits or drink juice and only ate hotel food.

Do you think you would have done better in Rome had you got all the modern facilities available today?

Yes. Probably instead of 14.02 seconds, I might have clocked 13.39 or 13.38 seconds. (But) I don't think I would have given a medal-winning performance even with these facilities as it was my best effort.

What is the difference that you see in today's athletes and those of Your time? First of all, the facilities that the government is giving to athletes, is second to none. No other country can even think of giving such facilities to the athletes.

How can you say that? How many countries have you visited?

I have seen many. Recently I was in the United States. They have an annual camp of one month, whereas in India the camp runs throughout the year. There the athletes pay their coaches; in India the government takes care of that. They (athletes) get sponsors, so they manage.

The saddest thing in India is that athletes have no responsibility, no attachment and no affinity towards their departments (employers). In other countries, whether you are in air force, railways or in police, you are first supposed to do your duty for your institution. You are an employee first, then an athlete.

I feel the Indian athletes have got too many facilities than they actually require; they should know their jobs as well. If they do not need to know their departmental job, it is because they get lots of money for winning medals, even at the Asian meets.

India Abroad News Service