Brave Hearts

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

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The Brave Hearts
In the year 1964, Brumel won the gold in the Tokyo Olympics. The achievements that stood in the name of Brumel amazed the world. It was indeed a result of the combination of three things in him, namely, the physical strength, scientific training and unique style. Wherever Brumel went, whether it was his country or the U.S. or any other, he received great applause from the lovers of athletics.
C
Valery Brumel
The beauty of sporting events is that they instantly dissolve any animosity between participating countries of the world and make them long time friends. They also result in bestowing honours on the athletes of different countries irrespective of the country to which the athlete belongs. For instance, Brumel who belonged to the Soviet Union was honoured by no less a country than the U.S. when he was awarded the 'John F Kennedy Memorial Gold Medal'. It is well known that the Soviet Union and the U.S. had been arch enemies in world politics for a long time.
But no one, be he an athlete or one belonging to any other sphere of human activity, enjoys a secular career graph. There are ups and downs, happiness or sorrow. The cycle goes on revolving round such phases. The same thing happened to Brumel at a time when he was at the peak of his athletic career. On the night of October 5, 1965, when he was riding on the pillion of a friend's motorbike, the rider lost control in an underpass and crashed. Brumel was knocked off unconscious.
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