The Race of My Life Read Online Free PDF Page B

present at PT (physical training) and the parade. The company commander told the JCO ( Junior Commissioned Officer), who in turn told my ‘ustad’.
    The next day, I was summoned by my ‘ustad’, who severely reprimanded me for daring to complain to the brigadier. ‘If you had a problem, you should have come to me, not the brigadier,’ he said, poking me in the ribs with his stick. This was grossly unfair. I had made no complaint; the brigadier had spotted me and asked why I was practising at that hour. I had merely, and honestly, told him that it was because I did not get enough time during the day. But the furious ‘ustad’ chose to punish me by making me carry a knapsack full of stones and run up and down for two hours. I did not even realize why I had been penalized so harshly.
    Still, the brigadier’s order had to be obeyed. But to get to his office I had to move, step-by-step, up the hierarchical ladder, being interviewed and threatened and abused by each officer. It took me almost a week to meet the brigadier, who ordered that I should be groomed as an athlete, given proper facilities and a special diet, and be exempted from fatigue duty.
    This incident opened up a whole new world for me, one that offered innumerable opportunities. The armed forces in India have had a long tradition of promoting sporting events and athletes, and if soldiers show potential and are hardworking, they are given incentives to encourage and motivate them to develop as competent professionals.

     

 
     
     
     
     
    5
----
    This was Not Sports
    he EME Centre’s sports meet, held in Secunderabad in December 1954, was the beginning of my rise. I stood first in the 400-metre race, with a timing of 52 seconds. A month later, at the Brigade Meet, in January 1955, Sohan Singh won the 400-metre race with a timing of 49 seconds, and I was second, clocking 50 seconds.
    Sohan Singh saw my success as a threat to his position, and I now began to experience the hostilities and rivalries that ran beneath the façade of sportsmanship. Earlier, I had noticed how resentful established sportspeople were towards newcomers, who they saw as challenges to their positions. I had always had great respect and admiration for their prowess and commitment, and now had, for the first time, seen how competitiveness had warped their attitudes. Sohan Singh stopped talking to me and even refused to allow me to train with him. His uncooperative behaviour pained me, but in no way did it stop me from practising with renewed vigour and resolve. I was truly saddened by their demeanour.
    About a couple of weeks after the Brigade Meet, I went to Poona for the Southern Command Sports Meet. For some mysterious reason Sohan Singh withdrew from the 400-metre event, preferring instead to concentrate on the 800-metre race. His decision gave me the chance to come first in the 400-metre race, with a timing of 49.4 seconds. The applause and cheers I received from the spectators greatly boosted my morale and self-confidence, which is very important for any sportsperson.
    The next event that I participated in was as a member of the Southern Command team for the combined services meet in Ambala. This was a gathering of athletes from the Northern, Eastern, Western and Southern Commands as well as a team each from the navy and air force. There were several national- level champions, including Joginder Singh, India’s champion in the 400-metre event who was representing the Eastern Command. Once again I came second in the race, reaching the winning post just a few yards behind Joginder Singh. With this success I qualified for the National Games to be held in Patiala in 1956.
    The national-level games were one of the most important sporting events in the country, and it was a great honour for me to have been selected. As a member of the services’ team, I would be mingling with the best athletes from all over the country, including sportswomen. What made it even more interesting was