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Well, the Commonwealth Games are over at least a few people should be given credit after all, India hosted such a mega sporting event in a grand way notwithstanding lot of bad press before the start of games.

More importantly, it climbed all the way to the Number 2 position on the medals chart,clinching 38 gold,37 silver and 36 bronze.

As the close to two week long grand sporting extravaganza has come to end, two things have emerged clearly: a. India is definitely emerging as a sporting powerhouse after their outstanding show. B.

The rather controversial games would create a culture of sports in India. These games have given enough opportunity to our sportsmen and women to showcase their class in the country where Cricket is no less than any religion and Cricketers have earned the status of demi gods if not gods. Let's start with the last day of the game.

After suffering a heartbreak in men's hockey final, Saina Nehwal once again brought smile in the faces of Indians as she defeated Malaysia's Wong Mew Choo in a tense women's single final match. Well,it was a double whammy for India as Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa duo also grabbed the gold for India in the women's doubles badminton. They thrashed Shinta Mulia Sari and Lei Tao of Singapore.

As far as hockey final match is concerned, Luke Doerner and Jason Wilson slammed two goals each as power-packed Australia wiped out India 8-0 to win the men's hockey gold .

Anyway, who has heard the names of shooters and athletes like Anisha Sayyed,Deepika Kumari,Rahul Banerjee,Omkar Singh and 4x400 gold meal meters quartet Sini Jose,Mandeep Kaur,Manjeet Kaur and Ashwini Chidanand Akkunji.

Apart from them, several other athletes have become household names post Commonwealth games due to their sterling show. Nobody had expected that handsome shooter Gagan Narang would even stole the show from his far more famous compatriot Abhinav Bindra and would put record four gold and a bronze medals in the Indian medals tally.

Another shooter,almost unknown,Omkar Singh would grab 3 golds and one silver. Same way,Vijay Kumar also got three gold in shooting. Gagan Narang's world record score while winning the 10m air rifle gold
was the highlight of India's domination in shooting at the Commonwealth Games.

And Faridabad based former Railway employee Anisha Sayyed has won two golds—the first in 25 m pistol event in air with Rahi Sarnobat and the second (individual) in the 25 m pistol event. The recently concluded Commonwealth games would also be remembered for an outstanding show by India's women wrestlers. They have challenged the common wisdom about the sport being a "man's game".

Woman grappler's from the host nation have won a raft of medals, where women's wrestling has been introduced for the first time. Geeta Phogat won India's first gold medal in the freestyle 55kg category by
defeating Australian wrestler Emily Bensted 11-0. Nirmala Devi and Suman Kundu then won a silver and a bronze medal in the freestyle 48kg and 63kg categories, respectively.

Phogat's sister Babita Kumari and Anshu Tomar won a silver and a gold medal in the 51kg and 59kg categories, respectively. Adding to the gold tally was Anita in the 67kg category. Gagan Narang's world record score while winning the 10m air rifle gold was the highlight of India's domination in shooting at the
Commonwealth Games.
And Faridabad based former Railway employee Anisha Sayyed has won two golds—the first in 25 m pistol event in air with Rahi Sarnobat and the seond (individual) in the 25 m pistol event.

The recently concluded Commonwealth games would also be remembered for an outstanding show by India's women wrestlers. They have challenged the common wisdom about the sport being a "man's game".

Woman grappler's from the host nation have won a raft of medals, where women's wrestling has been introduced for the first time. Geeta Phogat won India's first gold medal in the freestyle 55kg category by
defeating Australian wrestler Emily Bensted 11-0. Nirmala Devi and Suman Kundu then won a silver and a bronze medal in the freestyle 48kg and 63kg categories, respectively.

Phogat's sister Babita Kumari and Anshu Tomar won a silver and a gold medal in the 51kg and 59kg categories, respectively. Adding to the gold tally was Anita in the 67kg category.

"Wrestling is no more a man's game. My girls have proved it in the ring," said Piara Ram Sondhi, chief coach of India's women wrestlers. Many of these women hail from the state of Haryana, which has nurtured
many a champion male wrestler in the past. At least some of them belong to wrestling or boxing families.

"My father was a wrestler, it is he who motivated and inspired me to take up wrestling," said Phogat, who belongs to Bhiwani in Haryana. Her father Mahaveer Singh runs an akhada, or a wrestling school, where
Phogat and her four sisters were trained. Kundu also received initial coaching from her father and wrestler Ishwar Dahiya.

Sondhi said regular training was the key to success in wrestling. "Learning while playing is the best way to teach them. Also, appointing a foreign coach, Roin Dobu of Georgia, on a one-year contract has helped us a lot."

The training schedule goes from easy to tough, boosting the physical and mental strength of the wrestlers. "We do a lot of training on the mat," said Sondhi. "We train six hours a day, three in the morning,
three in the evening, six days a week."

The coach gave extra credit to working out in a gymnasium, saying no physical fitness regime is complete without regular visits to the gym. Kundu said the women receive special training before every event,
which helps them perform at their peak every time.

The National Institute of Sports, Patiala, organized such a camp earlier this year. The Indian women trained along with champion Japanese wrestlers. Phogat also stressed the importance of strategy in wrestling. "I
always make sure to read my opponent in the first round of the game and then plan my attack accordingly," she said. Once on the mat, the wrestlers have to change plans in accordance with their opponent's
strengths and strategy.

This is not the first time when Indian women wrestlers have excelled in international competitions.
Devi won gold medals at the Commonwealth Championship in 2005 and 2007. Kundu won a bronze at the Asian Championship, while Phogat was placed seventh at the 2006 World Championship. Alka Tomar has also won medals at the World Championship and the Asian Championship in the 59kg category.

And the Jat girls from Haryana have created a history when they swept the prestigious discus throw event.
Strongly built Krishna Poonia hasn’t seen her eight-year-old son Lakshya Raj in nearly six months. The sacrifice- the price of a grueling training schedule - paid off. Poonia, 28, threw the iron disc to a distance of 61.51 meters to lead an Indian 1-2-3 in the women’s discus final.

Krishna’s gold was the first for India at the Commonwealth Games since Milkha Singh won the 440 yards race in 1958. After Australian world champion Dani Samuels cried off due to health and security fears, the
Indian trio of Poonia, Harwant Kaur and Seema Antil were tipped to win at least two of the three medals.
As it happened, defending Commonwealth champion Elizna Naude of South Africa could throw only 57.61 m, and Poonia threw 61.51 in her first attempt. Harwant threw 60.16 in her third attempt, which won her the
silver; Antil achieved 58.46 in her second

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