The difference between a champion side and a first-round loser

Among the 33 sports disciplines recommended by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for participation the Asian Games in Incheon is soft tennis.

While checking up the achievements of Indian teams in lesser-known sports or those where the country has had little success either at the last Games or at the continental level in recent years, during the past few days, one was impressed by the record of the Indian soft tennis team as projected on the website of the  Soft Tennis Federation of India

And this is what was stated on that website

7th Asian Soft Tennis Championship 2012 held at Chiayi City, Chinese Taipei from November 15-20, 2012. Indian Soft Tennis Team Secured Gold Medal in Team Event (Women) & Silver Medal in Team Event (Men). Players & Official List Under the below.

Very impressive achievement, one thought, though India had fared miserably in this sport in the last Asian Games.

Perhaps the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the majority of us who were wondering what a sport like this was doing in the Indian contingent were wrong.  In fact SAI had lined it up for the axe.

Even as we also doubted the capacity of Indian teams in ten pin bowling, fencing, sepak takraw, taekwondo, rugby 7s, beach volleyball, triathlon, handball, cycling and modern pentathlon, it was natural only to look at soft tennis as yet another case of “let’s join the bandwagon”.

But gold and silver in Asian Championships? What else can you hope to get?

It looked too good to be true, however. So, one checked up the Asian Soft TennisFederation (ASTF). Sure enough it had a different set of champions!

Name of Event	The 7th Asian Soft Tennis Championships
Term of the event	15-20 November, 2012
Place	Chiayi City, Chinese Taipei
Category	MEN'S	SINGLES	DOUBLES
	1st Prize 2nd Prize 3rd Prize 3rd Prize	KIM DONG HOON (KOR) UAYPORN SORRACHET (THA) HAN JAE WON (KOR) ARCILLA JOSEPH (PHI)	LAI LI HUANG . HO MENG HSUN (TPE) LEE JUNG SUB . KIM BEOM JUN (KOR) JEON JEE HEON . PARK KYU CHEOL (KOR) LIN SHIH CHUN . LIN SHENG FA (TPE)
	WOMEN'S	SINGLES	DOUBLES
	1st Prize 2nd Prize 3rd Prize 3rd Prize	SUGIMOTO HITOMI (JPN) JON MYONG SUK (PRK) KWON RAN HEE (KOR) ZOLETA NOELLE CONCHITA CORAZON (PHI)	KIM AE KYUNG . JOO OG (KOR) UEHARA ERI . ABE YURI (JPN) CHENG CHU LING . CHEN YI CHIA (TPE) ZOLETA NOELLE CONCHITA CORAZON . ESCALA DIVINA GRACIA (PHI)
	MIXED DOUBLES
	1st Prize 2nd Prize 3rd Prize 3rd Prize	KOBAYASHI NAO . NAKAMOTO KEIYA (JPN) ZOLETA NOELLE CONCHITA CORAZON . ARCILLA JHOMAR (PHI) UEHARA ERI . IWASAKI KEI (JPN) PAK KYONG CHOL . JON MYONG SUK (PRK)
	MEN'S TEAM EVENT
	1st Prize 2nd Prize 3rd Prize 3rd Prize	JAPAN （JPN) KOREA (KOR) CHINESE TAIPEI (TPE) PHILIPPINE (PHI)
	WOMEN'S TEAM EVENT
	1st Prize 2nd Prize 3rd Prize 3rd Prize	JAPAN　 （JPN) KOREA　 (KOR) PHILIPPINE (PHI) CHINESE TAIPEI (TPE)

So, where did India finish in the Chinese Taipei city?

Fortunately, the ASTF was very prompt in replying to a request for details of the 2012 Asian championships, today (Sept 3, 2014).

The results showed that India had played consolation finals in both men and women’s sections having lost in the first round in both sections, to Mongolia in the men’s and to People’s Republic of Korea in women’s. India beat PRK in men’s consolation final and beat Nepal in women’s.

How can a National Federation, recognized by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, and the IOA, as claimed by it on its website, be giving a false standing of its teams on its website?

One does not know what the IOA would have stated in its proposals to the ministry about soft tennis. But surely, in this age where you tend to believe what is stated on the website of a federation, this is shocking.

Post-script-

What is soft tennis? This is how the Asian Soft Tennis Federation website describes it-

Soft tennis is a kind of tennis which was developed in Japan on regular tennis.　Soft tennis　is　similar　to　regular　tennis　with　some　common　aspects　but　with　also　some　differences.　The　main one being the use of much softer rubber balls. Hence the name “soft tennis” As the game uses these soft balls certain unique features have developed, such as a lighter and more flexible racket with a lower string compression. Unique techniques and game manoeuvring also make the best use of the softness of the ball. You can hit the ball hard with a good and comfortable feeling and will find it easy to control the ball. With a soft ball, light racket, low string compression and reduced speed of the ball after bouncing on the court, everyone, irrespective of sex and age, can enjoy the game of soft tennis. This is summed up by our catch phrase “Soft Tennis for Anyone and Everyone”.