No glory

Since 1948, Pakistan has participated in every Summer Olympics. The country’s athletes have won a total of 10 medals, eight of them in field hockey. This year marks the first time in history that Pakistan has failed to meet any of the qualifying standards to participate in the Olympics in a team or individual sport. Pakistan will only be sending a handful of athletes to the Olympics on invitations, regional quotas or wild cards, usually aimed at enabling nations that would not otherwise qualify to compete at the Games. This monumental failure is of course largely pinned on the fact that Pakistan’s men’s field hockey team, once a dominant force in the sport, has for the first time failed to qualify for the Olympics. There have been no other outstanding performances either in other sporting events. Pakistan thus becomes the most populous country in the world that is unable to meet a single Olympic qualifying standard. It is also the most populous country not to have won a single Olympic medal in the last 20 years – since the bronze medal it picked up in field hockey in 1992 in Barcelona. Countries far smaller than us from the South Asian region, including Sri Lanka, have fared much better.

This is a problem that Pakistan needs to review with some degree of earnestness. It should not be in the undignified position of attempting to persuade UK boxer Amir Khan to don the gloves in Pakistan colours on the basis of his heritage. Sports in general and the Olympics in particular mean far more than merely running fast, throwing objects a great distance or propelling balls into nets. They also signify national identity, culture and a great deal more. This highly symbolic gathering of nations, with the raising of flags and the playing of anthems brings out patriotic spirit everywhere. It is this factor which means the Olympics also help create a sense of national identity and bring nations closer together. For these reasons, we badly need sports and sports heroes. Our failure to produce them means there is less for young people to aspire towards – and a consequent lowering of collective self-esteem.