The Northeast figures on the national radar screen only when a Nellie occurs, or petroleum storage tanks in Assam go up in flames. Popular attitudes are, alas, both fickle and cynical but still it's good to know that now there's Dingko, too, to remind Indians of a region confined to the margins in every sense of the term. But boxing, as a sport, has always had a way of nurturing the children of the forgotten. The Greatest didn't have much to commend him apart from his fists of fury, remember? Dingko is no Ali, perhaps, but he has displayed an ability to hang in there, much like the man who could dance like a butterfly and stinglike a bee.

Not surprisingly, both the Indian Olympic Association and the Indian Amateur Boxing Federation are now scrambling to claim Dingko's achievement as their own after all, he has become the first Indian boxer to land an Asiad gold medal in 16 years. But they have quietly forgotten or, more likely, chosen to forget, that the 20-year-old had very nearly missed that flight to Bangkok. Someone, somewhere in the vast labyrinth of Indian sport had decided that he was out of form, was ill-behaved to boot, and had got his name scored out from the list of those who made it to the Indian squad. The gold he won should rightly symbolise not just the triumph of a young braveheart but the defeat of a cynical sports administration.

Thank heavens then, for Dingko's ability to come right back even after Fate and Babudom have landed their punches. This lad was not brought up on a high-protein, carefully calibrated diet that athletes abroad are fed. It was not milk and meat for him but some ``rice, dal and a littlecurry'', as a friend who shared Dingko's days of privation in an Imphal orphanage recalls. Dingko's story then is the story of Indian sport. Sporting performances reflect more than just athletic prowess, it mirrors the standards of living that the participating countries have achieved. It's not just a coincidence that China, South Korea and Japan headed the medals tally at Bangkok with more than 150 medals each.

Athletes from countries such as India must necessarily work that much harder to achieve excellence, their spirit must make up for what their bodies lack, their will must overcome the odds the abysmal lack of facilities place on them. This is why Dingko could well become an inspirational figure for Indian sport, and indeed for those Unknown Indians who have the sporting talent to take on the world but can never step out of the margins. As for Dingko himself, he has already set his sights on the future. ``I have fulfilled one half of my dream,'' he told the Indian media in Bangkok. ``The other halfcan now be fulfilled in Sydney.'' So here's to his Sports Odyssey 2000.