NEW DELHI: If the life of a sportsperson were to be likened to an amusement park ride, nothing would fit the script more than the rollercoaster that entertains crowds who never realise what it takes to build the machine that can endure those twists and turns day in and day out to deliver the perfect show every time.
Those twists and turns define life in general, but are felt more regularly in sports, where athletes go through a lot behind the scenes to taste success.
Shooter Manu Bhaker, India's latest sporting sensation, has a somewhat similar story to tell. Her two Olympics medals in Paris are about to change her life, with advertisers queuing up to have the 22-year-old endorse their brands. Forty of them in all so far, and they are willing to empty their pockets.
But before Paris, there was Tokyo.
Arguably the face of Indian shooting since her early success as a teenager, Manu's Olympic debut in Tokyo three years ago followed a different script, where not Manu the athlete but her malfunctioning pistol became the story with various plots and sub-plots. Not many bothered about the young athlete. Advice came in from every direction, at times even coaxing her into a reaction.
But Manu didn't get swayed for long, she learned.
Following a family vacation to help her get over the Tokyo nightmare, Manu had no doubt that she had to get back at it. There was a lot at stake -- career, redemption, a point to prove.
Three years from that day and in two days at her next Olympics, in Paris, Manu is having a life-changing experience with her two bronze medals -- the only Indian to do that in a single edition of the Games post-independence.
On the cusp of an unprecedented hat-trick if she can deliver again with her 25m pistol, Manu opened India's account with a bronze in the 10m air pistol event, followed by another bronze, alongside Sarabjot Singh, in the air pistol mixed team event.
In no time after that, advertisers were knocking at the door of the agency -- IOS Sports & Entertainment - that manages Manu. Not just that, many took the liberty to put their logo alongside Manu's image to ride the euphoric wave and get visibility via social media posts.
"There are about 150-200 brands who have done that," said a peeved Neerav Tomar, CEO and MD of IOS Sports & Entertainment, who was on his way to Paris when he talked to Timesofindia.com. "It's just completely unprofessional from corporate India. Quite a few of them are big brands."
The agency has already sent out about 50 legal notices and their team is working to caution many other brands.
1/10:Manu Bhaker's Remarkable Career Trajectory: From Haryana to Paris Olympics
<p>This web story highlights Manu Bhaker’s remarkable journey from her early life in Haryana to winning a bronze medal in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol event at the Paris Olympics 2024, showcasing her achievements and inspiring career trajectory.</p>
2/10:Journey of Manu Bhaker: Olympic Medalist and Shooting Star
<p>This web story highlights Manu Bhaker’s remarkable journey from her early life in Haryana to winning a bronze medal in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol event at the Paris Olympics 2024, showcasing her achievements and inspiring career trajectory.<br /><br /></p>
3/10:Manu Bhaker’s Early Years
<p>Born on February 18, 2002, in Goria, Jhajjar district, Haryana, India. Growing up in a region known for boxing and wrestling, Bhaker developed a passion for sports early in her life.<br /></p>
4/10:School Days and Initial Sports
<p>In school, Manu Bhaker engaged in various sports including tennis, skating, and boxing. She also earned medals in ‘thang ta,’ a Manipuri martial art, showcasing her diverse athletic abilities.<br /></p>
5/10:Studying at Lady Shri Ram College
<p>Manu Bhaker completed her schooling at Universal Public Senior Secondary School in Jhajjar, Haryana. Currently, she is pursuing her first year of Political Science (Hons) at Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University, balancing her academics with her shooting career.</p>
6/10:Passion for Shooting
<p>At age 14, following the 2016 Rio Olympics, Bhaker discovered shooting. She convinced her father to buy a sports pistol, marking the start of her journey in competitive shooting.<br /></p>
7/10:First National Success
<p>By 2017, Manu Bhaker won a silver medal at the Asian Junior Championships. She also secured nine gold medals at the National Games, breaking records and establishing herself as a rising star.<br /></p>
8/10:2018 ISSF World Cup Triumph
<p>In 2018, Bhaker won gold in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol at the ISSF World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico. She became the youngest Indian to win a World Cup gold medal.<br /></p>
9/10:2018 Commonwealth Games Glory
<p>At the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Manu Bhaker won gold in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol event, setting a new record with a score of 240.9 and proving her prowess on an international stage.<br /></p>
10/10:Historic Youth Olympics Gold
<p>In 2018, Manu Bhaker won gold at the Youth Olympics in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol event. She became the first Indian shooter and female athlete from India to achieve this.<br /></p>BRAND MANU BHAKER GROWS
On the brighter side, both long term and short-team deals are in the works for contracts worth crores for a year-long duration, which is 6-7 times of Rs 20 lakh the company was charging for brand endorsements by Manu before the Paris Olympics.
She was endorsing just one brand until now.
"We have got about 40-odd enquiries in just the last 2-3 days. We are focusing right now on the long-term association deals, and we have closed a couple of endorsements," said Tomar.
"Her brand value, of course, has jumped five to six folds. So anything we were doing before was in the vicinity of Rs 20-25 lakhs, now it has gone to the region of about Rs 1.5 crore for one deal of endorsements. This is one-year kind of engagement for a brand category with exclusivity."
"There are also a lot of digital-engagement queries of shorter term -- 1 month, 3 months. But we are focusing on the long-term deals," he added.
Tomar opined that Olympics is one big chance for athletes from a sport like shooting to shine, which is a niche and very technical event that is not very TV-friendly, and thus there is a lot of interest in small deals of three months, static posts and moment marketing to cash in on the benefits of Olympic success over the next couple of months or so.
"At the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games, we get a lot of medals in shooting. But then it just fizzles out. In the Olympics you stand out, and with two medals you just completely outshine," he added.
(Manu Bhaker showing her two Olympic medals - IANS Photo)
WITH SUCCESS COMES MORAL RESPONSIBILITY
Besides reaping the benefits of her hard-earned and historic success in Paris, Manu will have another major role to play, because as basketball legend Karim Abdul-Jabbar puts it - "Being a hero depends on what they do next" and not just what they have achieved.
On the subject of sporting greats and legends earning after their success and becoming a role model for the next generation, Jabbar shared his thoughts in his piece for esquire.com back in 2013.
Jabbar wrote: "I'm not against endorsements because it makes fiscal sense to use a familiar face to get attention for your product. What I am against is the cynical and expedient manufacturing of sports personalities as heroes that children should emulate. Because the problem with that is that it's difficult for children to distinguish between admiring athletes' achievements in their sports and emulating their private lives."
