Brave Hearts

Author(s): Kumarpal Desai
Publisher: Eye Care Foundation

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The Champion of Champions After the event, Darrek conceded that his defeat was at the hands of a superman and that Oerter was the strongest and the most formidable rival he had met in his life. Darrek also said that what he learnt from Oerter on that day was that if one wanted to win the Olympic crown, one has to be prepared for the highest sacrifice.
For Oerter, difficulties and privations had become almost a way of life.
The well-known cricket all-rounder from England Wilfred Rhodes played 58 test matches, scored 2325 runs and took 127 wickets.
During his entire cricketing career spanning 32 years, he played 1528 innings in first class matches, scored 39,802 runs and took 4187 wickets.
After retiring at the age of 53 years, he lost the vision in both the eyes and yet he attended all the test matches thereafter and could say with certainty the type of stroke the batsman at the crease had played with the help of the sound from the bat.
Whenever he described the nature of the stroke to the spectators sitting near him, they would not even imagine that the 'spectator' accurately describing the shots was completely blind.
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