What Sport does to you

I am sorry to admit this, but, yes, I watch Tamil soaps. The most boring and predictable kind. Regularly.  Today’s episode of the serial, “7-c” was specially boring and predictable. But it kindled a stream of thought in me, as I went back to my schooldays. Because the episode today was about sport. Sports Day.  

To quote from a blog (accidentally-mba.blogspot.com)  that I recently got hooked to,
“I am a typical middle-class person, and so are most of my friends. That means we have limited ambitions in life - Good family, good home, good job, good holidays, good entertainment, and if we're lucky, a quiet, peaceful death sometime in our late 70's. ...”

But every dog has its day. I have it during Sports days. No, I never was an overall champion, never the captain of the school team. I was just a bits and pieces, bronze and silver medal winning athlete. But Sports days are always memorable for me. In both  school and college.

Sport has this characteristic of bringing the best out of you, makes you scream to make your team win in some sport, any sport, run along the track to egg your friends on, run to the canteen and get “mineral water” for your friends and most of all, applaud your opponents’ victories as well.

As I said, this horrible serial I was watching triggered memories..

My 3^rd standard sports day qualifying, where I participated just to bunk class, didn’t even know what long jump meant and just ran across the line with my Sports teacher(Isaac Sir) chasing me with a cane. My co-culprits were my good-old buddies Prasad and Rajarajan.

Fast-forward to my 6^th standard, because we were forced to wear white shoes, I had my friends, twins, who coloured their black shoes white with water colour.

7^th std, now. Track was drawn for the first time ever in my school, I won bronze in 400 metres.. And scored 13 points in volleyball at a stretch.

My first relay Gold- the only gold medals I won in my life were all in relay – was in my 8^th standard.

Nothing interesting happened till my first year in college when our first year team became the first team in years not win a single point in athletics. 

But the next 3 years were a dream, we won and won and won. Occasionally lost as well.. 

Kho-Kho Mani and his team never lost and under his terrific “coaching” our girls team also never lost. I understood what support to your team is, what team spirit is, as we saw a hundred people cheering our team at 6 in the morning in the Volleyball field. We lost that match, it never mattered though. We won all trophies that year, Men’s Games Shield, Women’s Games Shield, Men’s Athletics Shield and Women’s Athletic Shield

And as I left my track one last time in my final year, after 2 bronze, 2 silver and 2 Gold medals, I went to the starting point and kissed the track. Felt like Brain Lara kissing the field after he scored his 400^th run. Then I broke down. Cried like a baby.

I thought that was the end of Me and Sports Meets. MBA sports meets are not meant to be so good. I personally felt there was no such thing called “spirit” for your batch mates in B-schools, as was evident from numerous events in my B-school.

But one event from SPJain’s sports fest reminded me that sport was sport and will get  the best out of you,no matter what. It was one of the most inspirational events I witnessed.

We played SPJain in the semi-finals of basketball and I was, as usual, not playing but supporting the team. We kept on winning points, by the end of 3^rd quarter, we were up by 9 points or so in a low scoring match. We saw one guy supporting the SPJain team, shouting like a football manager. He was limping but very aggressively supporting his team. Apparently, he was the captain of the team and was injured. Arrogantly, we mocked them and told them, his presence wouldn’t have made a difference. Irritated with us, he entered the court. With some 4 minutes remaining and his team needing a miracle to win it. He limped, jumped and screamed in pain. But slowly, but surely, he started moving better. The next few mins were unbelievable. They won by more than 4 points. The moment the final bell rung, he fell and his team carried him. On their shoulders. He deserved it.

Then there was this ‘First ever Sports Meet’ of MDI Akshayam. I didn’t participate in a single event. I was kicked out the carrom team for not practicing. But I was there everywhere, organising the event, under my boss Pratyaksh. 3 days without food or sleep. I had never worked so much in my life. The peace with which I slept, after the event was over, the satisfaction was something I would give anything for. Only Sport can do that to you.

Now, as I think back to all those years, I wish, I can go back and relive all those days again. I would live them again the same exact way. 

P.S: I would sincerely like to thank my roommates Akshay and Gotya for letting me watch all the lamest Tamil soaps and movies that I like and they hate.