Suresh Kalmadi

ver since we started work on the Commonwealth Games (CWG), I have been sleeping in fits and starts. All too often do I see nightmares. Why, the other night I dreamt that all the participating nations had boycotted the Games and it was left to me and Union sports minister M.S. Gill to race each other across 100 metres. And, you won’t believe it, the shocking part was Mr Gill won and I was left behind panting even though I am eight years younger than him. “Suresh, you ought to know I was a keen athlete during my college days at St George’s, Mussoorie. Plus you have to lose weight if you wish to be competitive,” he said with disdain even as I woke up startled. Relief came only after I realised I was in my bed and not at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium. Then, on another rain-drenched night I dreamt I was stranded in knee-deep slush at Connaught Place which, incidentally, looks like a war zone with dug-up roads and drains. That apart, to be frank, we all knew that there would be delays with 40 committees (that’s a CWG record) overseeing the work and 20 organising committees involved with running the Games. But with 74 days left for D-day, all I can do is distract my mind by trying to find poetry in railway time-tables and airline schedules.

Of course, I do fear that the CWG may be as lacklustre as the Pune marathon I have been organising for the last two decades. Reason: many stars like Usain Bolt (the fastest man on earth), Shell-Ann-Fisher, Chris Noy, Veronica Campbell Brown, Cate Campbell and Dwain Chambers have all pulled out. The news has been a dampener. But there is still hope. One suggestion is that those who cannot come to Delhi could send videos of themselves running, jumping, performing gymnastics and lifting weights. This could be shown on Doordarshan for national consumption. I sounded out Lalit Modi and he thoroughly approved of the idea. “You don’t have to have sportsmen present at the venue to feel the heat. You can sense the electricity even while watching the games on television,” he said in his typical flamboyant manner. However, he also came up with another suggestion—why not rope in Bollywood stars to take part in some of the events to add colour to the meet? I said the 20 organising committees would have to first give their clearance before one could move on that. “Suresh,” he said, “think about it, you could hold a desi CWG where foreign participation becomes redundant. Those who want to come can come. We can fill up the open slots with our own people. Once you firm up on that option, you won’t have to bother about your infrastructure not meeting international standards.”

But wouldn’t that be something like the national games? “These days national or international makes no difference provided people get their dose of entertainment,” he said nonchalantly even as he tossed a BCCI showcause notice in my direction. “Read it. It’s great fun. And don’t worry, I will help you organise a great show....”

(As imagined by Ajith Pillai)