Well done, boys!

DAY OF GLORY’ screamed a headline on the sports page of our sister newspaper, the Gulf Daily News, on Monday celebrating Bahrain’s twin success.

It indeed was, and a very rare and special one at that. After all, it is not everyday that a nation enjoys success in two different sports at two different international venues.
I remember a similar occasion almost 15 years ago. Believe it or not, it was back home in India when chess maestro Viswanathan Anand and tennis prodigy Leander Paes hit the jackpot on the same day: Anand won a major chess event in Spain and Paes was crowned the junior Wimbledon champion.
I was lucky to be following both the stories on both the occasions closely. Anand and Paes went on to achieve greater glory, and I hope it will be same in case of Hamad Al Fardan, who captured his third straight podium in Formula Three at Monza in Italy, and the Bahrain handball team, the winners of the gold medal at the International Children’s Games at Reykjavik in Iceland.
Both on Sunday night within hours of each other.
The Children’s Games may be a new concept, and not a serious sporting endeavour like say the Olympics, Asian or the Arab Games. It is more of “fostering co-operation, both cultural and social, among boys and girls around the globe, stretching and redefining what the term ‘personal best’ means”.
The Children’s Games was the brainchild of Yugoslavian Professor Metod Klemenc whose childhood was disrupted by World War II. It was his vision to promote peace and friendship through sports. Based on this dream, he organised the first Children’s Games and Cultural Festival in 1968, according to the official web site.
This is clearly in contradiction with modern sports ethics. As legendary football coach Bill Shankly famously said, sport is not a matter of life and death – it is more important.
But I still find a lot of merit in the Bahrain handball team’s victory in Iceland. It was achieved against odds and thousands of miles away from home. More importantly, it was the result of excellent teamwork by a bunch of boys put together randomly from different clubs dotting the kingdom.
That this team went on to beat the 2004 European Champions in the final for the gold medal underlines its spirit, talent and, above all, a strong will to win.
“It was unbelievable the way the Bahrain team members performed. It was not just about sport, but also about culture, friendship, ethics. They mixed with other players readily and shared many hours in each other’s company,” gushed Anne Raddic, a member of the Bahrain delegation, on the telephone after breaking the news of the handball team’s victory.
In Monza, Hamad fought his own battle, again against tremendous odds. But the 20-year-old put up another patented performance after retiring in the first race, and true to expectations maintained his momentum to claim his third straight podium of the Formula Three series. It was also his fourth.
But what is worrying is Hamad’s frequent retirements. Either through rash driving or technical failures, he has not been able to fulfill his true potential. He is a talented driver no doubt, and, as Bahrain International Circuit general manager Martin Whitaker says, has a cool head on young shoulders. Perhaps, Hamad needs to be a little more patient.
The aim of the race, according to another world champion Niki Lauda, is to win while going as slowly as possible. Hope somebody reads this to Hamad.
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As Wimbledon will dominate the sports pages for the next fortnight (see my colleague Patrick Cummings column on Page 46) here is a fascinating piece I read sometime ago.
It happened way back in 1895. Charlotte Cooper hopped on to her bicycle soon after winning her first Wimbledon singles title and went home.
“What have you been doing Chattie,” her brother Dr Harry Cooper asked her in between tending to the family garden.
“I have just won the Championship,” she replied.
Unimpressed, Dr Cooper did not even pause and got busy with the roses again.
Times have certainly changed. Wonder what histrionics are in store after this year’s finals?

By Vijay Mruthyunjaya
vmruthyunjaya@gmail.com