In a country where cricket is religiously followed, we tend to care less about what athletes achieve in other sports. There is high probability that if you mention the name Maria Irudayam to the common man on the street, he will have no idea who he is.
So who is this sportsperson we are talking of? Well, this man from Chennai has won the carrom world championship twice and is also a 9-time national champion.?
He has several titles to his name and has taken part in multiple events for India. He had a gift on the board and was unbeatable when on top of his game. His list of honours include the International Carrom Federation Cup in 1989 and 1997, World Carrom Championships in 1991, 1995 and 2000, SAARC Carrom Championship between 1997 and 1999, US Open International Carrom Tournament in 1996 along with French Open International Carrom Tournament in 1998.
In 1996 he became the first carrom player to receive the Arjuna Award. As of now, he is the only one to do so.?
During the 1990s, he more often than not finished in the top 3 in major competitions. In 2000, he finished 4th in the World Cup. Now one would expect this man to be in the limelight. But sadly that was not to be.??
?Maria faded into oblivion as the century turned and slowly was not even on the radar when it came to Indian sportspersons. In 2012, his wife died after being run over by a truck, but there was no help for him at this time of need.
He's not only been forgotten but pretty much is out of memory. The fact that the writer of this article had not even heard his name before doing research shows just how much into the background he has been pushed.
Of course he is not alone and the least we can do is to recognise them for their achievements. Nothing against cricketers personally, but they do hog a lot of the limelight. But we too are to blame for them. Carrom is such a popular sport and yet a man who did us proud on the board is not even known in most sporting circle