Background
Despite having the world's second largest population, India has the poorest Olympic record in terms of medals per capita. It has only won one gold medal in the last three decades, for the men's 10m pistol in 2008. Its biggest tally was six medals in London in 2012, or one for every 200 million people. It obtained only three medals in 2008. Previously, it was considered fortunate to bring home a single medal.
So, why is India not punching above its weight?
Money is probably one of the reasons. Despite its space programme and
rising population of billionaires, India is still a relatively poor nation in terms of per capita wealth, and sport has never been a government priority. Even trips to the Olympics for many athletes were funded by crowdsourcing rather than the Indian government to say nothing about the lack of facilities.
The Indian Olympic Association concedes that the government has not always done enough to assist its athletes, but claims that India's poor performance is due to more than a lack of funds or organization. According to its director, Narayana Ramachandran, sport is rarely at the top of anyone's priority, including sportsmen and their families. Mr Ramachandran believes that most Indian families would prefer their children to become dentists or accountants rather than Olympians.
According to Prof Ronojoy Sen of the University of Singapore, India's cultural and caste traditions also have a role. He has authored a book about the history of sport in India and argues that the country's bad athletic record stems from a deeper issue. According to him, Indians have always considered themselves as members of their caste, tribe, or area rather than as individuals. Even when people succeed at sports, their family and the larger community sometimes discourage them from pursuing it to the highest levels. And because of societal stratification, various castes have tended not to play sports together.
Shoot for the Stars aims to break this boundaries and fire India to the upper echelons of elite sports, one budding athlete at a time.