1. Every person should have a role model to look up to.
2. Since I am sports fanatic therefore I idolize sports personalities.
3. There were a few prominent sports persons whom I really admired when I was growing up such as Michael Jordan in basketball, Tiger Woods in golf, Ronaldo in football.
4. I was highly amazed by their athletic prowess but there was one sportsman whom I adulated for his personal traits.
5. That person was Indian cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar.
6. The things I had heard about him in media and Internet were a great source of inspiration for youngsters like me.
7. He was the true ambassador of attributes like sportsman spirit and fitness.
8. He was practically the first athlete in Indian cricket who had brought focus on fitness.
9. I read about his daily routine in his interview in which he mentioned that irrespective of his busy schedule he always managed to take out time for his daily workout.
10. I would have loved to spend a day with him and see how he did that even after being the most sought after sports person in India.
11. He also said that for him integrity and fitness were above any sporting ability because without these two qualities one cannot become a true sportsman.
12. He is also known for his humility and altruistic nature.
13. He is a philanthropist and runs a charity for differently abled children of our society.
14. Every now and then we can see him on TV espousing a noble cause for example, abiding of traffic rules or planting more trees in our neighbourhood or girl education.
15. During his peak sporting days he set an example for all other sport persons and youngsters like me when he rejected a 20 million dollar endorsement deal which was offered to him by a leading liquor brand in India.
16. He rejected this deal because he felt that as a public figure he had a responsibility towards the nation and could not promote something which he knew was debilitating for our health.
17. Another example of his firm belief in the importance of fitness in our lives.
18. Last month he set another example for youngsters to follow when he announced that he had turned vegetarian and would urge other people to do the same.
19. He is highly respected in our nation not only as a great sportsman but also as a great human being.