Sports and its administration
"We are not ready for it and our courage to accept defeat and change administrative direction to make it better has been spun against the political will of the nation"
Until in the sixties Sri Lanka did not have a ministry for sport. Late Minister V.A. Sugathadasa created the department of sport. In fact, at that time not many countries had a ministry for sport. For Sri Lanka, then Ceylon, being a young nation of having with its own history of less than two decades, it was a bold move by the government. It gave sport a recognition in the country.
Minister Sugathadasa was more of a sportsman than the rest in the parliament at that time. It is this credential that gave him the ministerial seat. He was quick witted, once a known sports person even in the advance age played Tennis regularly at the SLTA courts. Playing a decent veterans doubles never failed to amuse the crowd. The Colombo north sports stadium, the first of its kind in the country, is named after him. The site of the stadium was waste dump Sugathadasa made it into a stadium.
Uncharted and Undefined
Looking back, as to what the word SPORT should have envisage to the people in the sixties was a blur, undefined, goalless and open-ended pursuit to the ministry. Unfortunately, it is not well evolved even today and we are not far away from the original approach of the sixties. This is what the public senses and feels amidst the professionalism in sport.
Many countries in the world are in similar position without any imaginative mechanics to remedy the situation. If sport is not an ‘international event’ and only a local affair we are not badly off. Today sport is international. Our performances in sports are not judged by being pitched against each other in the country but against sportsmen from other countries. We are not ready for it and our courage to accept defeat and change administrative direction to make it better has been spun against the political will of the nation.
Efficiency and progress
Without a ministry government cannot allocate and direct funds to sports. Ministry with its policy making and department as its implementers, the system has not been efficient.
The division of the ministry into two, that is local sport development and elite program has been in practice in many countries. It is a plausible approach for us. The former deals with public indulgence in sport for all the goodness sport could instill into the society and the latter with professional high-performance pursuit.
Sport, was not invented and sustained for professionals. This is new and till 1970 most of the sport did not allow professionals into their competitions. Even with a long history, Wimbledon Championships permitted professionals in only after 1969. Today it has reached a level a young player saying, I like Sharapova and Federer because they are the richest. I don’t think both of them want to hear this. History never dealt with the richest in sport but the most dominant in an era and in the beauty of the skill execution and its exhibition.
So, if are to ever to change the efficiency in sports ministry structure have to change. This way it would provide the support mechanisms for the need of public participation and professional pursuit.
Bureaucracy and events
In young nations everything tends to be political. Sport as such was never meant to be an event where Chief guest, VIP’s and politicians taking the salute of the parading sports persons. For that matter speeches of secretaries and chief guest. Existence of these is the sign that the bureaucracy is going in the wrong direction. This degrade sports and its image to be a subservient tool of propaganda. Any long speech in a sporting event is a spoiler of all sporting event. Maturity of nations could be judged by such events.
We inherited the colonial model of sport development. In fact, it was good in introducing and sustaining many sports in the nation. If not for it we would not be having Cricket, Rugby, Football, Tennis, Swimming, Badminton and a few more sports even in the intensity it exists today. Public sporting knowledge was enhanced in the final phase of the British Colonial era and early independent Ceylon immensely. It is waning now. In many sports we are like a full stadium without sporting knowledge. When sporting knowledge goes out skill acquisition interest too gets out of the people. At national level it is the participatory skills that gives the benefits of sport, such as good health and avoiding detrimental habits.
Officer and Gentleman
The image of an office bearer in any sporting Institution before the sponsorship and professionalism crept into sport was that of an ‘Officer and Gentleman’. Such was the status of a sports office bearer. It is no more so. Reasons for it is, we have lost the standards in administration and the other is these offices have become social and political symbols. Both of these are killing the beauty of sport.
Like awaiting the arrival of a Messiah our sporting world wait for a man to appear and reverse the values to be good again. New Year is coming! Will the man appear!
George Paldano, Former int. player; Accredited Coach of German Federation; National coach Sri Lanka & Brunei, Davis-Cup, Federation Cup captain/coach– contact 94 77 544 8880 geodano2015@gmail.com -