Whether it is in the sports arena or in the sphere of sports administration, Punjabi domination has been unsurpassed by any other community in the country. A host of sporting legends have their roots in this land of five rivers and they have brought triumph and glory to the state and the country. Prabhjot Singh recounts Punjab’s contribution to Indian sport and traces the growth of the Indian Olympic movement as the XXXI National Games start off in Ludhiana.

The politics of the Games and the Games as politics by D.K. Tandon AS the countdown to the 27th Olympics begins, one is tempted to look back at the founding of the modern Olympic movement in 1894 and its development over a century. Legend has it that the ancient Olympics, held in Greece, were initiated by Hercules about 1100 BC. They were held over five days. The first and last day witnessed sacrifices and ritual ceremonies.

The dismal story of Indian sports
by K.R.Wadhwaney
EXCEPT for sporadic achievements, India’s over-all progress in the sporting arena has been dismal during the last 50-plus years. An in-depth study and dispassionate survey shows India was much better in the pre-1982 era in Olympic disciplines than in the post-IX Asian Games in Delhi.

Lack of sports psychologists affect performance
by Ravi Dhaliwal
BARRING the odd victory, like the one we achieved in the Junior World Hockey Cup recently, we enter competitions with a competent team and exit as an incompetent one. Our level never rises above that of mediocrity. Be it any discipline, any event, there is a sameness about Indian sport that is beginning to dull the senses almost like a scratchy record that has played on for too long.

For those who love dogs
by Amit Tiwari
A dog gives his master everything he can, as a token of love, and in return he only needs a corner to live, a piece of bread and a pat.

Backroom boys!
by G.K. Sharma
It was early morning of October 31, 1984. Omi Dawaser, recently retired Protocol Officer of MEA, had gone on his two-wheeler to INA Market to fetch vegetables. Suddenly, he noticed a stream of people rushing towards the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. He thought it was for a rally somewhere near Qutab or some open ground nearby.

Wedding with a difference
by Shona Adhikari
COORG is a tiny district tucked away in the southwest corner of the state of Karnataka, and its 1500 square miles are almost entirely covered with coffee and spice plantations. The region is now known as Kodagu, and its people are called the Kodavas. Physically, the Kodavas look different from the others in Karnataka. They are tall with sharp features, and according to anthropologists, of Aryan descent.

"I must have been a princess in my past life!"
by Asha Singh
HINDI cinema has been extremely kind to Bipasha Basu. With absolutely no background or training in films, she could bag the female lead in Ajanabee with some of Bollywood’s biggest names like directors Abbas and Mustan and co-stars Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor and Bobby Deol.

WIDE ANGLE: Original Sin that you will enjoy
by Ervell E. Menezes