It is all so heroic. It is all so terribly tragic, such a collective tilting at windmills it would appear Don Quixote was their patron saint. Kunjarani and Malleswari, who between them have brought home 43 World Cup medals, don't even rate a personal masseur to unknot their muscles. When new judo mats arrive months late in Patiala, coach Nusratkhon Valiev and his team wash the floor and the mats themselves. Gurcharan needs shorter, faster opponents to practise against but he's got such a terrific punch that they say 'don't put us against him'.
Some stories are less amusing.
The video camera is still a foreign object. There is nothing to do at the camp but train, sleep, eat, train. Routine is an athlete's ally, discipline his best friend, yet every now and then he needs to compete abroad. To assess if his training is productive, if he can reproduce practice form in competition. Athletes, like violins, need to be tested and tuned but only under the tense conditions of competition.