The Winner takes it all

(My article on how encouragement of the right behavior by leadership boosts that behavior in the ecosystem)

Published in the Assam Tribune dated 27th July 2018 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently tweeted that he was deeply moved when he saw Hima Das reach out for the Indian tricolour immediately after finishing first in the 400m final race in the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships in Finland. Later, the Prime Minister, while addressing a public rally in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi, also showered praise upon the young girl from Dhing, a nondescript village in Assam’s Nagaon district, for her determination and patriotism. Hima Das has also been assured of government funding for her preparation for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, under the government's Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS). The Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal too announced a reward of Rs. 50 lakh for her, and personally visited Hima's home in Dhing to congratulate her parents, Junali and Ranjit Das. The Chief Minister praised Hima's historic success and thanked her for bringing glory to the state.

This is an excellent example of how the political leadership and the society in general should encourage upcoming talent in different fields, including sports. Words and gestures of encouragement from people and institutions that matter go a long way in infusing the right values in the upcoming generation. If we want to encourage sports in the country, we must inculcate a love for sports in the upcoming generation. By reinforcing what it takes to be a great sportsman, over time we will get what it takes to be a great sporting nation.

While Hima Das created a sensation in the world of athletics on 12^th of July 2018, and became the poster girl of Indian sports overnight, another sporting fever had gripped the world – FIFA World Cup 2018, Russia. France thumped a sensational 4-2 victory over Croatia in the final match held on 15^th July 2018 and emerged as the world soccer champions. What was equally fascinating as the match itself, if not more, was the trophy presentation ceremony that followed. The VIPs on the dais included Russian President Vladimir Putin, FIFA president Gianni Infantino, French president Emmanuel Macron and Croatian president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic. It was a delight to see the way Emmanuel Macron and Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic were greeting and encouraging the national teams during the ceremony. While Macron hugged the French players thanking them for the victory, Kolinda embraced each of the Croatian players with empathy and encouragement, and was even seen wiping Croatian captain Luka Modric’s tears. Kolinda was reportedly present on each of Croatia's matches dressed in the colours of the Croatian national flag. There was torrential rainfall at the beginning of the trophy presentation ceremony, completely drenching the world leaders present at the podium, yet they remained undeterred until the end of the ceremony, and made every effort to make their players feel special and give them a feeling of importance.  All in all, it was a grand display of sportsmanship and patriotism at the FIFA finals.

It is anyone’s guess how the extraordinary gesture of the French and Croatian heads of state would have boosted the morale of the players. It also sent out a strong message to the aspiring and upcoming players in each of the countries that soccer is important to their national pride, and the nation stands firmly behind its players in their endeavor to achieve extraordinary feats in the sport and bring laurels to the country. Undoubtedly, soccer has been part of the tenets of European identity for good reasons.

This is not just about sports, and applies equally to any other field of life including literature, music, culture, engineering, education and the corporate world. We tend to grow what we recognize and value in our ecosystem, whether it is in our home, office, state or nation. Parents can inculcate good values in their children by rewarding the right behaviors. For example, when a child gets a warm hug or a gift from his/her parents whenever he/she does an act of kindness, he/she would notice that his/her parents value kindness, and would tend to grow up into a kind human being. Schools that reward punctual students would tend to groom punctual citizens of the future. Corporations that reward innovative employees would tend to generate more innovative products and services. Governments that reward good music would tend to boost music in the society.

Leaders and institutions must express through conspicuous action how much they value a certain discipline. We must take lessons from the way PM Modi, Sonowal and other leaders and institutions in India have demonstrated encouragement of Hima Das’s achievement, and the way Macron and Kolinda have boosted the morale of the French and the Croatian soccer players, in front of the media and the whole world. These overt gestures of positivity and support will go a long way in encouraging more athletes like Hima Das in India, and better soccer players in the world.