The transcript of the Milkha Singh Rediff Chat.
'He showed our athletes that with dedication and willpower you can come to Olympics and win medals even if facilities are not there.'
No question of going back on IOA CEO's appointment, says PT Usha
Milkha is most remembered for finishing fourth in the 400m final in the 1960 Rome Olympic Games
While everybody is going gaga over the successful hosting of the Commonwealth Games, former athletes Milkha Singh and India's sprint queen PT Usha are upset. They are unhappy about the raw deal they got from Suresh Kalmadi at the Games and are planning to meet the Prime Minister.
Sports fraternity on Tuesday reacted with anger, demanding a probe into the ill-treatment meted out to PT Usha during the 49th National Open Athletics Meet in Bhopal.
Avinash Sable does not want to be just a participant at the Olympics and believes he can a win a medal at the Paris Games beginning later this month.
Forced on the back foot after being slammed for appointing Salman Khan as goodwill ambassador of India's Olympic contingent, the IOA said, on Sunday, it would also rope in icons from music, cricket, and other sports to motivate the athletes.
India's tryst with fourth-place Olympic heartbreaks
Milkha Singh, 92, best known as the 'Flying Sikh' and most remembered for finishing fourth in the 400m final in the 1960 Rome Olympic Games, was bestowed with the lifetime achievement award.
Six Indian athletes found themselves agonisingly close to the podium, ultimately falling short.
Another gold medal in Paris would further elevate Neeraj Chopra's status as the greatest ever athlete in the history of Indian sport.
Atlanta 1996 Bronze medalist meets Tokyo 2021 Gold medalist.
The second edition of the Virat Kohli-backed Indian Sports Honours were held on Friday in Mumbai where the top performers in 17 sporting disciplines were felicitated.
Track and field success at the Olympics has largely eluded India
Rio Olympics silver medallist P V Sindhu was bestowed with the Sportsperson of the Year award during the 'Maruti Suzuki Sportsperson of the Year' Charity Gala Awards on Thursday night.
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India's legendary athlete Milkha Singh is far from being pleased with the lack of success at the Olympics and urged that coaches be appointed on contract basis with set targets.
Dipa Karmakar's historic 4th place finish in Artistic Gymnastics drew praise from the entire nation. The Tripura girl performed with exceptional grit but missed out on a medal by a narrow margin. The 22-year old, who had earlier become the first Indian gymnast to qualify for finals, was lauded by Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan and former cricketer Virender Sehwag.
Dipa Karmakar's historic 4th place finish in Artistic Gymnastics drew praise from the entire nation. The Tripura girl performed with exceptional grit but missed out on a medal by a narrow margin. The 22-year old, who had earlier become the first Indian gymnast to qualify for finals, was lauded by Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan and former cricketer Virender Sehwag.
Bollywood star Salman Khan's appointment as the Indian Olympic contingent's goodwill ambassador has not gone down well with star wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, who feels a sportsperson should have been chosen for the role. Salman, who is playing the role of a wrestler in his upcoming film 'Sultan', was named goodwill ambassador by the Indian Olympic Association on Saturday in the presence of star woman boxer M C Mary Kom, hockey captain Sardar Singh, and shooter Apurvi Chandela among others. Yogeshwar, the London Olympics bronze-medallist, said he cannot understand what purpose such an appointment will serve for the athletes. "Everybody has the right to promote movies in India, but Olympics is not a place to promote films." Yogeshwar tweeted in Hindi. "Can anyone tell me what the role of goodwill ambassador is? Why are you fooling the public?" he added.
Do you think the IOA has done the right thing in apponting Salman as the brand ambassador which they clam is to the motivate the athletes and also increase awareness of Olympic sports in the country? Or do you think the appointment is just a gimmick?
Will India finally reach the elusive double-digit mark? Raj Kishore Mishra, former joint secretary at the sports ministry, for one, is willing to stick his neck out on the possibility.
Neeraj Chopra scripted history in Tokyo on Saturday, winning the men's Javelin Throw and ending India's wait for an elusive medal in athletics at the Olympics.
Former India batsman and Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir slammed the appointment of Bollywood superstar Salman Khan as the 'goodwill ambassador' for the Indian contingent for the Rio Olympic Games scheduled to be held in August. "Look I believe in that as well, especially if there are no shortage of real sportsmen in this country and people have done some massive things in this country. I am for the country as well, I am for Olympic sports. I would have been more happy if someone like Abhinav Bindra or someone (sportsperson) had been made the brand ambassador," Gambhir said in Mumbai on Monday, at the launch of Sansui's new Curve 4K Ultra HD LED TV series.
A pre-tournament medal contender, the 23-year-old Neeraj Chopra fuelled the country's expectations by topping the qualification round with a stunning first round throw of 86.59 metres.
Out of the two world records held by track superstar Usain Bolt, his 100m dash timing of 9.58 seconds stands more likely to be broken than the 200m mark of 19.19secs, his fellow Jamaican sprinter Asafa Powell said on Friday.
Shobhaa De took to Twitter to post a harsh and stinging message for the Indian athletes currently competing at the Rio Olympic Games.
India has just 28 Olympic medals to its credit since making a debut back in 1900.
The six-hour run culminated with woman shooter Anjali Vedpathak lighting a cauldron at the National stadium, the venue of the inaugural Asian Games in 1951.
Brand associations have helped Priyanka Chopra-starrer gain traction in traditional and digital media.
India's K M Binu qualified for the semi-finals of the one-lap race.
Check out India's report card on the third day of the 2016 Olympics.
"I truly believe that in this rush, hatred and running around, we have forgotten love. I am not just the best lover in the world as I have shown myself in the films, I am love itself, I truly believe in the power of love." Shah Rukh Khan speaks out.
It is time we support Dipa Karmakar and not forget her by the time Tokyo Olympics roll in, the way we've forgotten so many others -- medal winners who have died in penury, who have had to sell their medals to survive, who have taken auto-rickshaws home from the airport. It is time that talent, and not money, decided who gets to be nominated into the International Olympic Committee.
'We keep climbing one step and slipping three. In 2004, our relay team was 7th in the world. Then we slipped from there. Otherwise, today our 4x400 metres relay team would have been gearing for a medal at the Rio Games.' 'If we need to compete at the world level, our thinking needs to be at world level. You can't have akhada thinking.'
'The BJP believes it has little to lose from a loss of alliance with the Shiv Sena. Fighting alone gives the BJP the chance to test its troops today, and then rework its tactics if necessary, before the big test in 2019,' says T V R Shenoy.
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