Team #ODR Presents – ‘Featured DreamRunner’

Posted on August 4, 2014 by OurDreamRun

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Thanks to all ODR Community Members for liking this page. I’m sure you’re eager to sample OurDreamRun’s unique offerings beyond sports promotion and news. In keeping with ODR’s central tenet of ‘identifying and lionizing talent’, we start a fresh feature this month, that of publicizing talent from among our friends and communities.

Before we get started, we would like to this opportunity to invite content (stories/pictures/videos) and other insights from all of you…you may be a doting parent, a good friend, a passionate coach or a spectator in awe of a fantastic talent demonstration. Let us celebrate sporting achievements together and help put the word out for others to see. Sports is a amazing career option where many make their passion their work. Do you know someone whose talent for sport is genuinely worthy or unique? Is someone close to you well on the way to sporting wonder in the near future? Share the story and reach out to the world.

We do not discriminate between the ‘levels’ of competition in any way. For all you know, that child who has been selected for his school team may well end up with international laurels within a matter of years. Our only criteria for featuring posts is talent, passion and commitment – If you’ve put in your whole and soul for sport, we’ll make sure that it finds its way to a wider audience.

We do not discriminate on the basis on nationality, gender, race, caste or color, although we do admit a slight bias for the ‘Young Guns’ who are taking big steps on the sporting stage. So what are you waiting for? Send in your inputs, with the information you’d like us to feature and other preferences that you may have in mind. We’ll respect your needs and choices and help you reach out to the wider community in the true spirit of talent promotion.

We intend to publicise talent as ‘DreamRunners’ or ‘OurDreamRunners’ depending on where they stand on the ladder of sporting success. Also, we intend to feature talent for a month, for a week or as a ‘mention’ depending on how ‘active’ they are, and if they’re pursuing any active competition – about to take place in the near future.

To summarise, through the ‘DreamRunner’ feature, it is our endeavour to showcase & promote talent as well as cheer for them as they take to the field. We seek to ensure that all who grace our pages eventually become ‘OurDreamRunners’.

Our first choice as ‘OurDreamRunner’ personifies all that we seek to accomplish, and a bit more.

  1. He hails from beyond India’s borders – yet, he has a close association with India.
  2. He is into a niche sport, not followed by many, and so, is deserving of ‘recognition’.
  3. His talent, while laudable is still relatively ‘hidden’ from the masses.
  4. He is a self-made sportsman, to whom ‘sacrifice’ has been a constant partner in his quest for sporting glory.
  5. He resembles the modern ‘sportsman with smarts’, who pursues sporting success relentlessly while pursuing a distinct professional career.
  6. MOST IMPORTANTLY, he is an OurDreamRun Community Member, who is eager to interact with all sporting enthusiasts within and beyond the community.

We’re sure he would be an excellent role model for all sporting enthusiasts, irrespective of the discipline and age group. Look out for him in the upcoming ‘OurDreamRunner of the month – August 2014’ Post.

Please browse the article at your convenience, feel free to post any and all relevant questions that you may have and engage with him through us, as he seeks sporting glory at a prestigious Asian-level event coming up at the end of August 2014.

We look forward to your continued engagement and rely on you to spread the message further. Let’s lend a global voice to ‘our’ heroes. Thank You.

(Picture Courtesy: youtube.com / rockmelodic-radio.com)

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Indian Sports – Moving beyond the ‘Bronze’ curse OR Why an Indian ‘Bronze’ medal implies a below-par effort by Indian sports administrators

Posted on September 26, 2014 by OurDreamRun

The India show at the 2014 Asian Games exposes one grim reality of Sport in India – that our ‘Killer’ Instinct and ‘Fighting’ spirit lasts only till we reach the sweet spot where a medal is assured. India’s medal tally, at the time of writing this article, stood at G-1, S-2 and B-13.

That color is of no significance, is the takeaway that India’s medal haul symbolizes. India’s is probably the most uneven spread of medals, when it comes to comparing the Golds, the Silvers and the Bronze medals won by other countries in the fray.

Isn’t this against the very essence of modern-day multi-event sporting endeavours – that of ‘Sirius, Altius, Fortius’, which also symbolise the Olympic Spirit?

And yet, this rationalization does not do justice to the athletes. For them this ‘Bronze’ symbolizes ‘Gold’, for they were not really competing with athletes from all over Asia; they were in fact competing against the Indian Sports Administration System, one that is increasingly values results over quality, and that too, of a questionable nature.

The murky politics-tainted waters of Indian Sports don’t provide clear-cut answers or even point to the right sources. The fallback rests on evaluating an important reason that could go into explaining this phenomenon, that of inappropriate incentivisation, in that a ‘medal’ is considered the ultimate accomplishment, irrespective of the colour.

With sports being controlled by administrators who have little or no experience of having actually competed at the international level, and with a majority of sportspersons being financially insecure, the bottom-lines thus defined, vis-à-vis player performance dictates how India projects itself at such games. A lack of professional expertise amongst the Indian Sports Administration bodies (or where expertise is available, a lack of ‘authority’) is a major flaw that can explain this spirit-less pursuit of glory.

Unlike a corporate mind-set (increasingly taking the fancy of Indian Sports administrators), which considers ‘results’ to be the Holy Grail, a sports-focused mind-set need to define an appraisal system, which embody the very spirit sports combined with the aspirations of the citizens. India’s sports administrative bodies seem to be following this path, without due heed to a ‘context-specific’ criteria that the Indian sports scene demands.

Make no mistake, Indian sport has come a long way indeed in recent years, but it does require a course-correction – to rectify its major flaw today. ‘Settling’ for bronze is not what we like to read about in the media. Winning the ‘hearts and minds’ of the audience, the opposition and the supporters back home is what champions are made of.

Milkha Singh, India’s most respected athlete ever, may not have won the ‘elusive’ medal, but neither did he ‘settle’ for anything less than his ‘best’. It is this ‘best’ that we want to witness when India takes to the field, because ‘medal or not’, these are the performances that history will preserve for posterity.

NOTE: This article does not in any way criticize the performance of Indian athletes. It only reflects on the ills of the Indian sports administration system that revolves around a flawed incentivisation principle. It needs to be remembered that ‘administrators’ and other ‘support staff’ are vital cogs in the process, and the reason why we send a huge number of them along with the athletes to such games. They have to carry responsibility for India’s performance at the games. Nothing less will do.

(Picture Courtesy: Korea.net)

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Sangay Tsheltrim: OurDreamRunner for August 2014

Posted on August 5, 2014 by OurDreamRun

OurDreamRun’s first feature on talent publicises the exploits of an immensely talented sportsman from the exceptionally beautiful Hill Kingdom of Bhutan – the land of Thunder Dragon.

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SANGAY TSHELTRIM is a professional body-builder who is on his way to the ‘Asian Bodybuilding Championships’ in Macau at the end of August 2014, competing in the Men’s Athletic Physique Category. We will follow his journey as he prepares to take on the might of Asia. He is a member of the #ODR #Ourdreamrun community and is as passionate about sports as the rest of us – representing an ideal convergence of passion, perseverance and of bridging borders & cultures. Your support will go a long way in boosting his confidence as he gets set to represent his country on the world stage.

ABOUT SANGAY

Sangay was born in Phuentsholing, bordering India on 10th March 1982. He was always keen on sports and dance while in School, captaining his High School’s basketball team and perfecting Michael Jackson’s ‘Moonwalk’ by the time he cleared grade 12 in 2001.

Sangay was then chosen by the Government of Bhutan to train as a military cadet at the prestigious National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakvasla, India. This is a connection he shares with a member of the ODR team. While at NDA, and later at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, he excelled at Basketball, dance and physical training activities.

After his military training, Sangay was commissioned as an officer in the Royal Bhutan Army, before subsequently joining the elite Royal Bodyguards.

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VENTURE INTO PROFESSIONAL SPORT

According to Sangay,”Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Commando was a childhood inspiration that drew me to the sport of bodybuilding. I used to be skinny then, but always longed to look toned and well-built. I used to admire guys with big toned muscles and wished I too could emulate them. After joining the National Defence Academy, as I started developing muscle mass, the idea of a bodybuilding future started taking shape in my mind. However, it was only in 2007, on a long duration military course in India that my passion really took off. 06 months of regular gym and a diet of 12 eggs a day saw me gaining 08 kgs. After I got selected in the Royal Body Guards in 2008, I became a member of the famous ‘Planet Gym’ in Thimphu where I still work out. The decision to turn pro came in 2011, after witnessing the South Asian Body-Building Championship in Thimphu. My dream to participate in an international event meant that I had to make difficult professional choices. After standing 3rd in the 2013 National Body-Building Championships in Bhutan, I decided to resign from the Army to wholeheartedly pursue my dream. My dream, like that of all sports-persons, is to get a medal for my country and see the Bhutanese flag raised high in the air“.

THERE IS MORE TO SANGAY THAN JUST SPORT

After his stint in the Bhutan Army, where he rose to the rank of Captain, he has now transformed himself into an avid entrepreneur, running a car dealership (Chhundu Motors), an education consultancy (KST Education Consultancy) and a supplements store (KST Fitness Store) catering to fitness enthusiasts. As part of his car dealership business, he was recently in South Korea, signing joint ventures with Ssangyong Motors to promote their vehicles in Bhutan. All this, while working hard to achieve his professional sporting dream. Beyond his personal goals, he has been working hard to promote body building as a professional sport in Bhutan.

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           (South Korea, tying up a JV)                  (Thailand, Mr. Bhutan 2015 sponsor-search)

Sangay is extremely modest about his accomplishments only conceding that his business ventures pay for his ‘bodybuilding expenses’. But now we know better.

THE PRIDE OF OURDREAMRUN

A self-made man, we’re proud to feature Sangay on the page as a go-getter sports enthusiast who proves that the opportunity is waiting for all of us – provided we have the commitment and passion for it. He is also an ideal example of how “sports as a choice” can co-exist with other professional pursuits in a healthy manner – achieved through proper planning and pragmatic career decisions.

His story is all the more inspiring because he is ‘ONE OF US’…. a member of our community whose story reflects a crucial modern day reality — that achieving greatness in sport is well within the reach of any aspiring individual, irrespective of background and financial wherewithal. His decision to turn pro – at 29 years of age, to actually representing his country at the Asian level at 32 years of age, speaks volumes about what all of us can achieve if we put our mind to it.

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SALUTE

Sangay, as you prepare to undertake the journey from your home in Bhutan to the world stage in Macau on the 27th of August, the entire OurDreamRun community wishes you the best and assure you of our prayers and support as you take on the competition from all across the continent. You have already won our hearts with your incredible story and we salute you and your family for inspiring us.

A special message from Sangay to the OurDreamRun community :

“Thanks to the entire ODR community for making me the ‘OurDreamRunner’ of the month. I thank you immensely for your support and prayers. I’m proud to be associated with all of you. I look forward to engaging with you and will be happy to help in any way in answering queries about my journey into sport and bodybuilding in particular. In case you’re planning to visit Bhutan, let me know if you run into any difficulties. Do drop me a line when you get here…maybe we can go out for a beer, for the sake of friendship-through-sport”.

GO Sangay !! GO Bhutan !! GO OurDreamRun !! GO Sports !!

(Picture Courtesy: Sangay’s FB page)

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