India's Olympic medallists felicitated by LK Advani

Expressing disappointment over the dismal performance of the Indian hockey team in London Olympics, BJP leader L K Advani today suggested a time-bound approach to project the country as a sporting superpower.

In an interaction with the London Olympics medallists here, the BJP leader praised the efforts of the six sportsperson who won two silver and four bronze medals for the country.

"It fills us with pride to see the performance of our sportsperson in this Olympic... But the present performance of the hockey team is disheartening and we could not win even a single match," he said.

Recalling the golden era of Indian hockey during the captaincy of Major Dhyanchand, Advani said, "I fondly recall the 1936 Berlin Olympics which was the era of Major Dhyanchand and India excelled in hockey. We won golds during that period and no one could score even single goal against us." There should be a time bound approach and efforts should be made to restore our glory in the game of hockey, he said.

Olympic silver medallists shooter Vijay Singh and wrestler Sushil Kumar along with bronze medallists shuttler Saina Nehwal, boxer M C Mary Kom, shooter Gagan Narang and wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt were present during the felicitation ceremony.

Praising boxer Mary Kom, he said, "It is a moment of pride for us that a mother of two children brought glory to the country with her immense determination and focus."

He specially congratulated Sushil Kumar who won medals in two consecutive Olympics and hoped that the wrestler will bring more accolades for the country.

"India is advancing in all direction, but sports has always been an elusive field for us. But with the performance of these sportsperson, even we can dream of being a great sporting nation," Advani said.

Sports Minister Ajay Maken and acting president of Indian Olympic Association (IOA) V K Malhotra were also present during the occasion.