After Sanjay Singh-led Wrestling Federation of India body’s suspension, the Sports Ministry has asked the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to form a temporary panel to run the WFI. In a letter to the Indian Olympic Association chief, the Sports Ministry said the temporary committee can manage and control the affairs of the WFI including selection of athletes.

The letter which was signed by Tarun Pareek, undersecretary to the Centre, read that taking note of the compelling current situation arising out of the influence and control of the WFI’s former office bearers, serious concerns have arisen about the governance and integrity of the WFI.

The letter added that this situation requires for immediate and stringent corrective measures to uphold the principles of good governance in sports organisations, and thus, now it becomes incumbent on the part of the IOA to make suitable arrangements for the interim period for managing the affairs of WFI, so that sportspersons of wrestling discipline do not suffer in any manner and the principle of good governance is the sports body do not get jeopardised.

Meanwhile, another round of election to the WFI cannot be ruled out since the latest administration led by the newly elected chief Sanjay Singh, a loyalist of former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, has been suspended by the Centre. Reports said that the temporary panel formed by the IOA will look after the day-to-day affairs of the WFI, including making entries for participation of sportspersons in international events, and holding sporting events.

Earlier, the Sports Ministry in a statement noted the newly elected body appears to be in complete control of former office bearers in complete disregard to the Sports Code. It stated that the Wrestling Federation of India is being run from the premises controlled by former office bearers, which is also alleged premises wherein sexual harassment of the players have been alleged and at present the court in hearing the matter.

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Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha on Thursday slammed the wrestlers protesting on the streets against sexual harassment and demanded the arrest of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

After IOA’s Executive Committee meeting, Usha said wrestlers staging protests on the streets amounts to indiscipline and is tarnishing the image of India.

Usha criticised the wrestlers for not waiting for the report of a committee that is investigating the allegations before deciding to protest on the streets. She said the players should not have protested and waited for the final report.

Reacting to Usha’s remarks, wrestler Bajrang Punia said the protesters did not expect such a harsh response from PT Usha. Punia said

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Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur formed a committee to look into the allegations against Brijbhushan Sharan Singh. Speaking to the media, Thakur hailed the Narendra Modi government and said it has done excellent work for sportspersons in the country. He further said some 3,000 players get Rs 5 lakh on their boarding, lodging, and training.

The protesting wrestlers moved to the Supreme Court and sought an FIR against Singh over the sexual harassment allegations. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal mentioned the petition before a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha for an urgent hearing and argued the police were bound to register a case since the matter involved sexual harassment.

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Ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games, India’s Olympic body has slammed the rules imposed by the Japanese government on athletes from several Covid-hit nations. The organisers have included additional measures to reduce infection risks from several countries, including India, that have seen a significant impact from variants of Covid-19.

According to the protocols, athletes from severe Covid-hit countries like India will have to undergo daily testing for a week before they depart for Japan. In addition, they are instructed to refrain from coming into contact with other teams for three days after their arrival in Japan.

Calling the rules unfair, the Indian Olympic Association said with the new rules in place, the athletes would lose three crucial training days. Athletes are allowed to arrive in the Games village only five days before their event. Now three days will be wasted, this is the time the athletes need to be moving towards their mode to peak… highly unfair for Indian athletes, who have worked hard for five years, to be discriminated against just five days before the Olympics, IOA president Narinder Batra and secretary Rajeev Mehta said in a joint statement.

Further, the sports administrator said that a total of 11 countries, including India, Pakistan, and the UK, would be affected. Where and when will the athletes have their breakfast, lunch, dinner during these three days, as everyone has food in the Games village food hall where all athletes and officials of other NOCs (National  Olympic Committees) are present all the time. Where can athletes train? because practice/training areas are never empty and athletes and officials of other NOCs are present all the time, the IOA president added.

The Tokyo 2020 organisers have said they had received a document from India’s Olympic body. The organisers have stated that for participants from areas such as India that have seen significant impact from variants, it is necessary that they follow more stringent rules than those outlined in the (athletes) Playbook, and are similar to the existing border control measures.

However, the organisers did not make it clear whether athletes from the affected countries would be allowed to train in the three days after their arrival.

India’s Olympic body, meanwhile, has ensured that Indian athletes will be fully vaccinated before the Games starting 23 July. Earlier, the International Olympic Committee had also said six countries – Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka had pledged to fully vaccinate their delegations and conduct additional testing.

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Meanwhile, the upcoming multi-sport mega event, Tokyo 2020, will be held from 23 July to 8 August 2021. Some Indian athletes, including javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and wrestler Vinesh Phogat, are training abroad and will travel to Tokyo from their respective locations. The rest of the Olympic team will depart from India.

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Sushil Kumar, the Indian freestyle wrestler termed Narinder Batra’s call that India should pull out of the Commonwealth Games permanently as ‘unfair’. 

Batra,the President of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) reasoned that the standard of competition at the Commonwealth Games is not high, so it was a waste of time and money for everyone involved. Instead of competing at CWG, Indian teams should plan for better competitions and prepare for the Olympics, he said.

The boycott call by Batra came in the backdrop of a frosty relationship between Louise Martin of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) and IOA, after the former dropped shooting sports from the 2022 Birmingham CWG programme.

However, two-time Olympic medalist, Sushil Kumar openly objected the idea saying, “As an athlete I want to say that one should not rob any athlete of a chance to win medals at any stage. CWG is a big competition and I think it is unfair to call for a boycott because one sport (shooting) is not there. Wrestling too was thrown out of CWG in 2006.” 

“I will request IOA president to not raise such demands. Also, the competition level is rising. These days sometimes you have to fight Russians fighting under Great Britain’s flag,” he added.

Some IOA officials were also taken aback by Batra’s statement. IOA treasurer Anandeshwar Panday is not in favour of a total boycott. “He is the IOA president so in that sense I can’t give you my reaction (as an IOA official),” Panday said. “In my individual capacity, I want to say that every multi-sport event has relevance. Take for instance the SAF Games, in which only seven countries participate. We organized the Commonwealth Games and it was one of the better managed games. We should keep on participating in these as it is a platform for many athletes to excel,” he added.

Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, president of Wrestling Federation of India also said he was against pulling out of CWG. “I don’t agree with his statement at all,” Singh said.

“Commonwealth is a big stage for a few of our athletes. There was a time that Canada used to beat us in wrestling. But now when we are beating a few of them, so where is the harm in it?” he added.

Raninder Singh, president of the National Rifle Association of India, said Batra was right about the level of competition at CWG. “President is right when he says the standard of competition is low. It is largely mediocre in the rifle and pistol disciplines. There are exceptions, yes, but the level is not at par with the World Cups. But in the shotgun events, the competition is higher because of the participation of Australian and England shooters,” he said.

“A far as total boycott is concerned; it is the prerogative of the Government of India. When I called for a boycott, it was not because our sport was not part of the programme… It was mainly because they (CGF) were treating us badly as a country. They were being disrespectful,” he added.

Sportspersons believing that they shouldn’t be robbed of the opportunity to excel have expressed their views against Batra’s call.

Boxer Vijender Singh, “By this logic, India should not send teams to invitational tournaments either because the level of competition is not like the Olympics. Why belittle the athletes’ achievements? CWG has strong boxing nations such as England and Ireland in fray.” 

Krishna Poonia, discus thrower, said,”For athletics, CWG is world-class, the competition is of higher level than the Asian Games.”

Zafar Iqbal, former India hockey team captain, “That’s a ridiculous statement coming from a man who is holding numerous important positions in national as well as international sports federations.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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