Malleswari wins big accolades in Australia

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Sydney: The celebrations for Karnam Malleswari, India's lone medal winner at Sydney Olympics, have begun even before her arrival in India as she wasfelicitated in a function in Sydney on Thursday night.

India have always struggled at Olympics to win a medal in individual events. As Malleswari won her bronze medal in women's weightlifting earlier this week, she became the first Indian woman to win Olympic honours in bothteam and individual events.

Malleswari bagged the honour of becoming only the third medal winner since Independence in individual events. Leander Paes was the second of this trio as he won bronze at Atlanta Games in men's singles tennis competitions in 1996.

It was no surprise that the Indian populace both in India and overseas has been elated by this tiny girl's achievement in an event which is making its debut at Sydney Olympics.

Recognising the magnanimity of her performance, Karnam Malleswari, 24, was felicitated in an function organised at Sydney's Regent Hotel on Thursday.

The Australian media has also been giving wide coverage to this proud Telugu girl as her determined profile has made it to quite a few Australian publications.

Malleswari's feat has been picked out of hundred of such efforts as it is being considered unique by media and the competing countries. Her effort is different as India have been labelled as the worst sporting country in the world.

It is not that India have got this dubious distinction because of some racial prejudice or discrimination on the basis of the pathetic health of the Indianeconomy.

Australian Bureau of Statistics arrived at this conclusion after dividing medals won by India in the previous Olympic Games against her huge population of one billion.

Malleswari, who is an employee with Food Corporation of India, intends to participate in forthcoming Asian Games and also the next OlympicsGames at Athens, Greece.

Her dream of emulating her Olympian feat at Athens may, however, remain unrealised as Olympic authorities are seriously considering scrapping weightlifting as Olympic sport.

A number of weightlifters have disgraced this discipline by turning positive results for their drug tests at Sydney Olympics.

India Abroad News Service