National 6 (Spotlight Weekly)

Mixed Bag

Three bronze medals do little to help the image of a country tarnished by a dozen 'missing' athletes

By A CORRESPONDENT

At the end of the Busan Asiad, the score-sheet showed Nepal had won three bronze-medals. This should have been good news, especially given the athletes' poor level of preparation before leaving for the South Korean city.

But news of 12 athletes who went 'missing' in Busan, some even failing to turn up to play the games for which they were trained and sent, came as a big blow. This is not the first time Nepalese athletes have disappeared during tournaments overseas. Only a few months ago, a couple of Nepalese girls went missing in Norway where they had gone to play in the women soccer tournament. Stories of many Nepalese footballers vanishing in Japan are still fresh.

Magar from (left), Rai and Bista : Triumphant

But this did nothing to soothe the dejection and disappointment the Nepalese people felt when they were let down by the athletes in Busan. People are also very angry at the official behavior. "The officials should be held responsible for being so complacent in letting those athletes escape," said one former boxer. According to him, though the officials may not have known of the athletes' motives, they should have at least become prepared to avert such an eventuality.

Seven boxers and five other athletes left their rooms in the Busan sports village and vanished. Many say the athletes had relatives working in Seoul and might have sought refuge with them. Whatever the reason, the athletes chose to tarnish the image of their country.

Sports analysts say it is high time Nepalese officials took this issue seriously in order to prevent such embarrassments in future. Because of the irresponsible behavior of a handful of people, they say, dedicated athletes could suffer. The way the Canadian government dragged its feet in giving visas to Nepalese cricketers last year is fresh in many minds. Disappearances of athletes like that in Busan tend to justify such acts.

Poor financial conditions and lack of better prospects evidently drive athletes to resort to such extreme measures. Moreover, this malady is not unique to Nepal. The entire football squad of a South Asian country had 'disappeared' in Japan a few years ago. "These things do happen, but the important thing is for sports officials to try and enforce strict measures so that they will not be repeated in future," said a sports analyst.

Meanwhile, three Nepalese taekwondo players made the country proud by winning bronze medals. Despite the shabby preparation and budget cutbacks, these athletes proved that the country can still hope to bag medals in international tournaments.

Ritu Jimi Rai, Renuka Magar and Deepak Bista won bronze medals in taekwondo, once again proving Nepal's strength in martial arts. All three athletes had also won gold medals in the 8th South Asian Federation Games held in Kathmandu in 1999. They are now eyeing medals in the Olympics. This year, Nepal had participated in 10 out of 30 disciplines in the tournament.