When a govt considers sponsoring individuals, there arises a need to question the preferential order - should a person who has to beg to feed himself be supported or the person who wants run or play football. As a democratic government, it is obvious where the priorities lay.
A distinction between sports and sportspersons is critical to this discussion. A govt has to support sports because a healthy population is always an advantage. But, the method of supporting sports does not involve supporting sportspersons, since the need is to create more open spaces or grounds where people can do all the activity they please. Many people do not become physically active because they do not have easy access to open areas. Having large open spaces spread in regular intervals, say a football field among every 1000 citizens, is lure enough for people to take a walk, atleast. It is important for the govt to create rules that ensure that this distribution of open space is adhered to.
Supporting sportspersons is an entirely different ball game. There has to be some logic behind sending people to "represent the country" to sporting events like the Olys, at great cost to the taxpayer, if there is little that the general public benefits from it. In the same illogical vein is the popular step to felicitating those who excel in sports, by either rewarding them with cash and freebies or, worse, giving them a coveted govt job. The latter seriously undermines the functioning of the govt machinery - if the bronze medal winning wrestler can be made an asst. manager in the Railways for that reason alone, it begs the question: how is the Railways staying on track? And if indeed that particular job is a superfluous one, since the wrestler will anyway be out practicing rather than attending office most of the time, why can't any unemployed be given that post? In India we have the practice of awarding excellent sportspersons a national award, that besides cash comes with freebies, like subsidised travel. There is an entire Sports ministry staffed with secretaries and the usual admin support staff that is dedicated to encouraging sportspersons. Do I need to say that this itself is a huge waste of tax payer's money? What is more relevant would be for the infrastructure minister to ensure that open spaces are a critical part of every city and town and new complex that comes up.
There is a need to rethink this wasteful expenditure, and rather than encourage individuals, ensure that avenues for the entire population to take up sports are readily available.
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