Indian Sports and Entertainment Industry

SBajwa · Post by **SBajwa** » 18 Jul 2012 01:31

seeking the olympic redemption

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120717/sports.htm#1

Hiten · Post by **Hiten** » 20 Jul 2012 19:58

he has been designated host for Indian contingent for London 2012

http://sharadgoestotheolympics.blogspot.com/

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 20 Jul 2012 20:15

sbajwa, no need to go that high, even shimla, naini tal, darjeeling will be good enough
leh might actually be too high!

Asit P · Post by **Asit P** » 31 Jul 2012 01:31

India opens its account with a Bronze medal in Olympics

. Well done Gagan Narang. Congratulations India!

Asit P · Post by **Asit P** » 03 Aug 2012 19:35

And now a Silver in shooting! Way to go India....Expecting a few more from the boxers, wrestlers, Saina and Paes.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 03 Aug 2012 19:42

for high alt training the usual height is between 5000-7000ft. thats the east african highland height...proven to work for sure lord knows. Iten, kenya is 8000ft ASL.

the khan running/cycling elite seem to train in places like mammoth lakes(CA)-7800ft and flagstaff(AZ)-6900ft.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 03 Aug 2012 19:56

We have so many hill stations all over the country to setup such facilities for training. Do our athletes train at such places at all ?

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 03 Aug 2012 20:00

Ooty is used by some distance people. the stretch from ooty to gudalur has some good high alt grassland type places .. often used for filmi shoots also.

sum · Post by **sum** » 03 Aug 2012 20:04

^^ Am sure such things might be happening but is not shown on TFTA documentaries like how the Amrikis media cover their training regimen

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 03 Aug 2012 20:06

ofcourse. LOTS of shakinaw videos like this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbKp2HeUpkY

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 03 Aug 2012 20:13

I see lots of Chinese faces in the US coaching teams. Can India too benefit by getting some of the expertise that China has. I know US has added advantage to attract the western wannabes from China, which will not play to our advantage. But, it is good to learn from them too. Winning medals is all about the coaching and training regimen in the end. The means are less important than the end. It is not like we do not have strict regimental training. From what I am told even for folk dances like Kathakali the regimen is strong massages, images of which may not play well in media.

We have a lot to learn from the Chinese and former Soviet bloc folks, since massa like infra will take a very long time to build all over the country, for all to have equal access to facilities anytime they wish within their home range.

Suraj · Post by **Suraj** » 03 Aug 2012 20:18

We don't lack locales for training in many sports. We even have pretty descent opportunities to train in something like cross country skiing, and I'm sure plenty of tough IA jawans, if properly trained, can be genuine winter olympics medal contenders in that event. If we put aside TSP bhaichara and actually spend more effort chasing them out, we'll even have downhill skiing contenders.

What we lack is a system actually focused on creating a pipeline of medal contenders, barring something like the Gopichand/Padukone badminton academies, the Haryana boxing stables, or the IA's shooting system that produced two silvers in Rathore's 2004 one and now Vijay Kumar.

ManjaM · Post by **ManjaM** » 03 Aug 2012 23:53

....what options does an ordinary citizen with Olympic Ambitions have ? Private citizens can fund them, But what is the role of Govt here ?

Sell all your property, pawn your gold, borrow money from friends, relatives and pay for the olympic ambition.

After representing Karnataka state at the national level, one becomes eligible for and receives a sports scholarship. After i represented Karnakata at the nationals, i applied for one and i received the scholarship. It was a grand sum of Rs250/- for the whole year. Didnt even pay for travel and food for a week. Many families have been brought to ruin following this dream.
Best option for serious sportsmen is to join the armed forces and let the system pay for your obsession.

negi · Post by **negi** » 05 Aug 2012 00:13

^ Sir which sport (swimming ? ) . You are right about joining the armed forces part, those guys take good care of sportsmen.

ManjaM · Post by **ManjaM** » 05 Aug 2012 04:15

Negi Saar, it was triathlon. I was also a competitive swimmer, though never represented the state.

Vipul · Post by **Vipul** » 26 Aug 2012 19:00

Indian U-19 team Cricket team wins the World Cup beating Australia.

member_23370 · Post by **member_23370** » 28 Aug 2012 05:23

Not much hope for chess olympiad this time. Vishy and Koneru are sitting out this one.

hanumadu · Post by **hanumadu** » 28 Aug 2012 07:51

Somdev's US open first round match live now at

espn

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 02 Sep 2012 19:06

anyone following Ind V cameroon nehru cup final ? 0-0 at 16:00

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 02 Sep 2012 21:48

what ?? people missed this fantastic match ? we won against cameroon, a team ranked 108 steps above us !

nelson · Post by **nelson** » 04 Sep 2012 21:14

Girisha Hosanagara Nagarajegowda bags first Paralympic medal for India

Congratulations and three cheers.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 05 Sep 2012 06:50

I saw the penalty phase between india & cameroon. superbly taken by both teams until the cameroon last kick hit the post and bounced back to goalie, it then bounced towards goal before the grass stopped it!

overall the std of penalty taking was better than any shivering WC cup match and leagues better than Bartania std where gerrard or lampard would usually miss

Suraj · Post by **Suraj** » 09 Sep 2012 00:26

No one seems to have mentioned this - Paes again made the US Open men's doubles final with Stepanek, losing to the Bryan brothers. Too bad he could never get that 2nd Olympic medal. Thanks to him and Hesh for giving positive news in the doubles events from almost every Grand Slam - either or both of them have managed to make it at least upto the semis with such consistency that we have gotten used to it. There used to be a time when an Indian making a grand slam semifinal was heralded for decades. These two have been doing it on an annual basis for over a decade now. It will be a rude awakening when they're gone, with no one else in sight to serve as a replacement.

Vasu · Post by **Vasu** » 12 Sep 2012 13:34

Hope it comes through.

Northeast Today: ONGC Plans Football Academy in Tripura

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is planning to set up a football academy in Tripura to boost the sport in the northeastern region, an official said here Tuesday. ONGC Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Sudhir Vasudeva Monday met Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar in New Delhi and discussed the setting up of the football academy.

“The ONGC CMD has assured the chief minister that the football academy would be set up after conducting a proper study of the project proposal,” a Tripura government official told reporters. Tripura last week won the 58th Junior National School Games football championship in under-17 age group after defeating Chandigarh in 7-6 goals via tie-breaker in Srinagar.

nelson · Post by **nelson** » 14 Sep 2012 18:41

As predicted by the elderly on these pages, PV Sindhu begins her giant killing in style...

Sindhu stuns Olympic gold medallist Xuerui (and Chindu)

kshatriya · Post by **kshatriya** » 14 Sep 2012 20:24

Sindhu narrowly missed Olympics..Had she been ranked 1 higher she would have been in it.....She will be a force to reckon in the future.. Here is the match

Yayavar · Post by **Yayavar** » 14 Sep 2012 21:20

nelson wrote:As predicted by the elderly on these pages, PV Sindhu begins her giant killing in style...

Sindhu stuns Olympic gold medallist Xuerui (and Chindu)

Wah!! liked your comment on Chindu

VenkataS · Post by **VenkataS** » 15 Sep 2012 01:09

nelson wrote:As predicted by the elderly on these pages, PV Sindhu begins her giant killing in style...

Sindhu stuns Olympic gold medallist Xuerui (and Chindu)

Sindhu was awesome. The Chinese girl appeared to be more tired than her in the match.

I hope that Gopichand gets all the help that he needs for his badminton academy which is churning out these awesome players.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 15 Sep 2012 09:52

the first hammerblow of Op Bagration seems to have fallen in the East.

OP manouver group under Gen Sindhu has created a 6km breach in the chinese defences and during the night, 3 armour divisions and their associated supply convoys have passed through.

she is much taller than Saina and more of a natural athlete...gives her advantages in bending back and getting shots where saina cannot reach. 47:12 that killer smash was worth it.

pgbhat · Post by **pgbhat** » 15 Sep 2012 11:10

The Cuban Dronacharya

Cuba’s BI Fernandez is one of the reasons Indian boxers have been throwing such a mean punch. Meet the first ever non-Indian Dronacharya Award winner

Dressed in a track suit and carrying a small plastic bag, the Cuban is partially drenched but has no time to examine the extent of the damage as delegates walk up to him to offer their congratulations. The Cuban, as he is known in boxing circles, is BI Fernandez, the first non-Indian to be presented the Dronacharya award, given every year by the Indian Government to sports coaches. A Cuban national, Fernandez was chosen by the awards committee this year as ‘a special consideration’ for his contribution to the success of the national boxing team, which won a good haul medals for India in the last two Olympics.

“It is just that I have been working in India for over 22 years and have made many friends. This award came as a surprise and everyone is happy for me,” says Fernandez, credited with coaching stalwarts like Dingko Singh, Gurcharan Singh, V Devarajan, Akhil Kumar and Vijender Singh. Fernandez was one of the foreign coaches first hired for the Indian team in 1990. He works at the National Institute of Sport in Patiala (NIS), and divides his time between Cuba and India.

Ardeshir · Post by **Ardeshir** » 15 Sep 2012 12:33

In other news, PV Sindhu playing remarkably well in the China Masters Super Series. Currently running Jiang Yanjiao ragged. 1 set each.

Suraj · Post by **Suraj** » 15 Sep 2012 12:52

Lost narrowly in the 3rd set

She's young and impatient, but is in good hands with Gopichand around to train her. At 180cm tall, plus athletic, she has reach like Tine Baun does, and the potential to win the big ones as she gains experience.

Ardeshir · Post by **Ardeshir** » 15 Sep 2012 18:09

Suraj, that is precisely who I was thinking of when I saw her play - Tine Baun. Fantastic reach, and great coverage across the court. And like you said, she's young, this experience of already having beaten top Chinese players will do her immense good.

kshatriya · Post by **kshatriya** » 16 Sep 2012 00:58

http://sports.ndtv.com/tennis/news/item ... or-2-years

Mahesh Bhupathi, Rohan Bopanna banned for 2 years

Bhupathi has already come up with an angry reaction on the Twitter. "The cranky old grand fathers on the executive committee, who have never played tennis waiting for a reaction? There is one coming.stay tuned!," tweeted the veteran.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 20 Sep 2012 11:49

New Delhi: Badminton ace Saina Nehwal has become India's top earning woman athlete, signing a three-year, Rs 40 crore, contract with the sports management firm Rhiti Sports.
"I'm happy and looking forward to start a working relationship with Rhiti. With Rhiti's background and credibility, they know how to balance things and that is a big plus point," Saina was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.

With this deal Saina has not only become the highest paid Indian sportsperson who does not play cricket, but has also become one of the world's best-earning badminton players. China's men's singles player Lin Dan is reported to earn about Rs 12.8 crore annually, while Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei's figure is Rs 8.7 crore approximately.

Rhiti Sports is the same firm that manages the endorsement deals of India cricket captain MS Dhoni, who is one of the biggest earners in endorsements around the worked. They will now look after Saina's brand associations, corporate profile, patents and digital rights, images and all other commercial rights exclusively, the paper reported.

On his firm's association with Saina, Arun Pandey, Chairman and Managing Director of Rhiti Sports said: "She has placed India on the world map for badminton and changed the outlook of people in India towards the sport."

With her bronze medal win at the 2012 London Olympics, Saina became the first Indian badminton player to win a medal at the Olympics.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 20 Sep 2012 17:42

40 Cr is a nice amount for the young lady...i think 30 % will be taxable amount.

Though that amount will pale compared to what our average crickter would earn shown on paper and not so disclosed part

Asit P · Post by **Asit P** » 23 Sep 2012 04:43

PV Sindhu breaks into world top 20 ranking
Rising Indian shuttler PV Sindhu on Thursday broke into the world top 20 in the latest badminton ranking following her "giant killing" exploits at last week's China Masters tournament.

The 17-year-old Indian, who stunned the world after beating London Olympics gold medallist Li Xuerui in the quarterfinals of the China Masters, surged four places to achieve the 20th place in the BWF ranking announced on Thursday.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/spor ... 477735.cms

kshatriya · Post by **kshatriya** » 26 Oct 2012 10:06

Don't know if the Chinese players are really getting injured when they are about to lose to Saina or if its some Commie psyop to pull the injury stunt... Going by the comments they are definitely losing sleep...

One of the comment "The next aim is to beat her the All England and World Championship.She is the Chinese Number 1 enemy "

Sania really thrashed Yihan in this match

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 26 Oct 2012 12:52

std psyops to deny total victory. wherever people dig in and fight hard, cheen has cracks.

physically wang yihan looks somewhat over the hill and tired just as in the OG final against Li Xuerui.

maybe the best resources and attention is diverted to Li Xuerui now using the soviet doctrine of supporting only the breakthrough units and leaving the rest to fend for themselves

Virupaksha · Post by **Virupaksha** » 31 Oct 2012 00:39

X-posting a post from cricket thread. Replace cricket with any sport below, it is the way how that sport works. Unfortunately in many non-cricket sports, even getting to the top doesnt change it.

An article by Aakash Chopra, posting in full as it tries to explain what some had been trying to explain. Getting 1 person to the top in sports requires 500-1000 people to waste their lives.
http://blogs.espncricinfo.com/beyondthe ... ialisi.php

What's wrong with commercialising cricket?
Munaf Patel worked in a factory earning Rs50 ($1) a day before making it big in cricket © AFP
A journalist from a local news channel in Punjab recently questioned me about the growing commercialisation of Indian cricket. "Isn't it killing the game? Aren't 10 different logos on a player's jersey crass?" he asked. His cameraman zoomed in embarrassingly close, mike shoved right into my face. The rest of his coterie promptly pulled out their pens in anticipation of a juicy byte that would make tomorrow's headlines.

It may not be an earth-shattering, news-generating question, and my answer was run of the mill, but somehow it is a favourite among the press. As a cricketer, one almost feels like a criminal facing a media trial for a crime you haven't committed. But since you are one of the "beneficiaries", however small and indirect that benefit may be, you ought to stand up and defend your case or be ready to be crucified the following day. You feel trapped, wanting to avoid these questions, but that's exactly what the media wants. It's imperative to stay firm and present your case. Here's my take on the matter, perhaps not news worthy, but worth a read.

Do you know that there are about 550 first-class cricketers in India and about 60% of them don't have jobs outside of the game? Their only source of income is the five-month window in winter, in which they represent their respective states and make just enough to last the remaining seven months.
If you add the players who are on the periphery and make the cut only once in a while, the numbers swell to the thousands. Since corporate houses or banks do not have positions for even the top players in Indian cricket, it needs no mentioning that the players in the second tier find it tough to make ends meet. Their only hope is to make it to their Ranji team one day and then the lucrative IPL, and perhaps don India colours later. Till then they need to bear all their expenses themselves. And trust me, playing cricket in India is still an expensive hobby.

Do people who vociferously condemn the money in cricket ever take time out to fight for the cause of these unemployed athletes? When people talk about certain players making millions in the IPL, do they ever think of the ones who are putting their livelihoods at stake to pursue the sport?

In fact, most of those who have ended up making a lot of money from cricket have gone through the same ordeal while growing up. I'm not sure if many people know that Munaf Patel, before playing for the country, worked in a factory for Rs 50 a day, and that he bowled barefoot during his formative years, since buying bowling shoes was a luxury he couldn't afford. Indian cricket is full of such stories, but we only get to hear the ones about those who make it to the top.

I recently met a first-class cricketer who is a regular in his state side, which means that he's talented. He bowls reasonably quick and has earned the bragging rights of having dismissed Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag in a List-A match.

The tale of his struggle outside the five months of first-class cricket moved me. He lives in the mountains and looks after his apple farm when the cricket season is not on. His off-season job profile is to supervise the work force that he hires on daily wages. Since that money is paid at the end of the day after looking at the quality of the work accomplished, he needs to be on his toes all day. And on days when work force is not at its optimum strength, he needs to fill in himself. The thought of off-season cricket training doesn't even cross his mind. A decent ground and gym are a couple of hours' drive away. The only way for him to keep fit is by running or carrying heavy boxes of apples on his back, up and down the mountains. He doesn't have a "proper" job, and doesn't harbour hopes of getting one.

People who know the business of apple farming will know that it takes only one unseasonal shower to ruin a crop. There are many like this player in Indian first-class cricket. Is it still fair to assume that money in cricket is a bad thing?

Some may just shrug it off by saying that the bigger the risk, the better the reward. But many don't make it to the top, and putting everything on the line doesn't always guarantee a good life. Gamblers don't always hit the jackpot. You've got to be talented enough to reach a certain level to demand perks. Just that in cricket the amount of talent isn't always proportional to the rewards you get. There are things like luck and injury involved, which are beyond anyone's control. Also, one needs to remember that the life of a professional cricketer can be drastically cut short by a poor season or an injury. He must make a lot of hay while the sun is shining, for the sun sets a lot sooner on a professional sportsperson's career than it does on those of other professionals.

Do the naysayers realise that some of the perks trickle down to the ones who need them most only because there are so many logos on the Indian/IPL jerseys, and because there are still takers for the TV rights? The big fish may still survive if that pool dries up, but the others will simply die.

Last but not least, the newspapers and news channels these journalists work for make money selling advertisements. The audience may detest the ads but they are a must for the commercial viability of the news medium. If people in the media don't complain about the fact that their salaries are derived from this same commercialisation, they shouldn't grudge a sportsperson his earnings either. In any case, there are only a handful of cricketers who are making megabucks; the rest are still trying very hard to pursue their dream without burning holes in their pockets.