Can Hima Das sustain the weight of expectations? The talented athlete won admiration for her gold run but unrealistic expectations of masses and media can put her in the spot.

Vishal Uppal explores the culture of over expectation and frenzy in India and how it harms the sports.

Indian sprinter Hima Das won five gold medals in July in International Athletics events. She gained appreciation from masses of the country that has yet to see an individual athletic gold medal in Olympics. Tweets and social media posts from masses and celebrities raised bar of expectations that will weigh heavily on her shoulders. The 19-year-old athlete from Dhing village in Assam received congratulatory note from President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She also received appreciation from noted cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar.

In a reply on twitter, She promised to work hard and bring more medals for India. She is one of the most talked name in Indian athletics after P. T. Usha and Milkha Singh.

Before we move with topic of expectations and frenzy, we must look at her commendable achievement that made her a recognizable name.

Hima won her first gold in 200m race on July 2. She clocked 23. 65 seconds to win the medal in Poznan Athletics Grand Prix in Poland. She won her second gold in 200m race on July 8 at the Kutno Athletics Meet in the same country. She won her third gold in 200m race at the Kladno Athletics Meet in Czech Republic with a time of 23. 43 seconds. She won her fourth gold in 200m race at Tabor Athletics Meet and fifth gold on July 20 at Nove Mesto, Czech Republic in 400 m race, recording 52. 09 seconds on the clock.

This was a record haul for Hima Das in a single month in 2019. She won four gold medals in 200m, 400m and 400m relay format in 2018 from June to August.

Her brand value is also on upward path. She now fetches a fee of 6 million rupees per endorsement.

Considering her performance, the expectations of her performing in upcoming Athletic Meets is at an all-time high. People in India expect miracles from their sports persons and lashes at them for performance that may be even real on ground zero. Consider the backlash faced by Mahendra Singh Dhoni for his batting in ICC Cricket World Cup in 2019. People in India did not weigh the superior bowling attack from opposition and wished M S Dhoni to outperform in the game. The aftermath sometimes, reach to irrational levels. The frenzy created by media and propagated on social media is too hard on players. The masses do not hesitate to malign even the most credible players.

Hima's career best is still far off from the timings of the athletes that will compete in World Championships and later in Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

The people have to accept that she is still learning and needs training at best facilities in the world. The improvement takes time. She may even fail to qualify for events that are in higher pecking order. The people in India and media must act mature and understand the process that undergoes in training of athletes for competitive events. We have destroyed many sports persons through judgment that runs high on emotional octane. Those who ardently follow sports know that a tennis player who plays astonishingly well on grass court may be an average player on the clay court. Even in same format, we see a same player doing well on hard court in US Open and gasping for breath In Australian Open, This is also true for athletes. The climate in Poland and Czech Republic may have suited Hima Das but it could be a different affair elsewhere.

Hima Das is highly talented but she is still not the best on the bigger stage. We must let her find the purpose and drive to win. We must judiciously use social media. Her wins are an inspiration for generations and her losses are a reality check for her to do better. We must stand by her on her journey to greatness.

Image Source: Erik van Leeuwen, attribution: Erik van Leeuwen (bron: Wikipedia) - http://www.erki.nl/pics/main.php?g2_itemId=156797