Recently an international tennis star was belittled for being unaware of a celebrated Indian cricketer.
Yet how do we justify our own ignorance and insensitivity to scores of other prodigious sports talent in India? The Government, sports authorities, the media and the society can all share the blame.
In the last decade, we have done a great disservice to the country’s sports players by letting such glorious talent waste and slowly wither away. Women sports players have it tougher than the grind. The lives of many sports persons have ended on a miserable note in India.
We present to you four such exceptional sportswomen that India lost.
Sita Sahu
15-year-old Double Special Olympics medalist now sells paanipuri to make ends meet for her family in Madhya Pradesh
A 15-year-old wonder did India proud and won two bronze medals in a 200 and 1600 meter race at the 2011 Athens Special Olympic.
And how did her country repay her back?
This bronze Olympian now sells paani puri along with her family back in her village in Madhya Pradesh.
After her father fell sick, Sita discontinued going to school and started working full time to sustain her family.
The State Government had announced a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh for gold, Rs 75,000 for silver and Rs 50,000 for bronze winners.
Sahu won two bronze medals and was entitled to receive a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh. However, she didn't receive a penny.
After news reports highlighting her plight started doing the rounds, the State Government sanctioned Rs 1 lakh for Sita Sahu in mid-2013.
It didn't go a long way in helping her. She still helps her family in making paani puri/papdi chat in her one-room house. Her brother sells them on a hand-cart under a street light. The entire family earns around 150 Rs. a day.
The Olympian's mother laments she cannot even afford milk or fruits to feed her children.
Such is the abject poverty that this ace player now lives in.
Nisha Rani Dutta
Former archery champ forced to sell her bow to fix her house after it collapsed in the rains. She quit archery due to extreme poverty
This young former archery champ is living in dire circumstances. She’s represented India abroad and won many accolades: a silver medal at the 2008 South Asian Federation Championship in Jharkhand, a bronze medal at the 2006 Bangkok Grand Prix, and the Best Player Award in the 2007 Asian Grand Prix in Taiwan.
After such an illustrious career, tragedy struck when she was forced to sell her archery bow for Rs. 50,000. A heavy spell of rains caused her house to collapse.
Her trainer had gifted her the bow which was worth about Rs. 4 lakh.
She failed even to get a bank loan to pursue sports education. Her family members didn’t have enough land, besides she didn't have a guarantor to show for applying for a loan.
"When I participated in events for the country, nobody recognised me. I felt disappointed, and I decided to sell my bow as I had no options left."
Eventually, the Government announced a financial assistance of Rs. 5 lakh for her.
Things had to get to such a grim stage until help reached this fallen player.
Rashmita Patra
Acclaimed Oriya footballer now runs a betelnut shop in her village.
This Oriya footballer won acclaim several times in her short-lived but illustrious career.
She was born to a daily wage labourer's family. She represented India in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for under-16 women's qualifier at Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia in 2008.