[1]An international rugby player himself, actor Rahul Bose has a word of advice for Indian Olympians headed for the world’s most prestigious sports event in London this month. He believes that the sportsmen should use these last few days before the competition to relax and acclimatize themselves to the European weather rather than sweating it out at practice sessions on the fields.
Having gone through the grind of international games and competitions himself, Rahul says that most sportspersons tend to underestimate the time it takes to get used to the new place.
“It’s too late to ask someone to practise. For an international athlete, these last few days are to focus on the game and relax his/her body and mind. I have been an international sports person so I would say just one thing to all those headed for the Olympics — the environment is new, weather is weird, so players should go there and get used to all that, Olympic village, the food, etc.” says the 44-year-old athlete and actor.
He blames this lack of awareness among Indian players for all the sporting failures we have had in the past at international competitions. “On D-day, your real magic will come out if you are relaxed. We have seen, a lot of times our players don’t even come close to the best timings of other athletes. That’s not because they aren’t as good, rather because of acclimatisation and getting used to the surroundings,” he adds.
We hope the athletes are taking a cue.
Links:
[1] http://archive.asianage.com/rahulb1jpg-138