Mission Olympic Cell meets, focus on personal coaches and support staff policy

Express News Service

The Mission Olympic Cell meeting was finally convened on Thursday — the first since the end of the Tokyo Olympics. Apart from the important announcement of the new Target Olympics Podium Scheme Chief Executive Officer (CEO) PK Garg, who is taking charge from Monday, there were discussions around India’s Tokyo show and the way forward.

One such topic discussed was about personal coaches. It had been one of the biggest issues ahead of the Olympics. There were needless controversies involving personal coaches and physios. Interestingly, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) wants the National Sports Federations (NSFs) like shooting, badminton and wrestling to follow certain guidelines or prepare comprehensive policies regarding personal coaches and physios accompanying individual athletes.

The SAI apparently wants to avoid another controversy during the Asian and Commonwealth Games next year. It seems logical because there are a set number of slots (usually decided by percentage) for coaches and support staff at any mega multi-discipline event. And because of certain individual athletes, others’ requirements should not be compromised. One piece of advice was to include all such personal coaches and support staff as part of the Annual Calendar for Training and Competition and make them available for others if the need arises. Badminton is one sport that always has this issue. Table tennis saw it when Manika Batra wanted her personal coach at the Games. The wrestling federation too was involved in this needless issue involving coaches and physios, especially of Vinesh Phogat.

This policy, perhaps, may not be an ideal solution, but the pre-departure drama before the Olympics prompted the SAI to advise federations to come up with a policy. Whether this is a viable solution needs to be seen. What happens if a top athlete like Neeraj Chopra or PV Sindhu tells the NSF that they need their coach and support staff? Or will there be exceptions for top athletes while others have to toe the NSF and SAI line? Whatever it is, it seems this time the SAI would try and streamline Target Olympics Podium Scheme (TOPS) approval for athletes.

Take for instance the case of a swimmer in the last Olympic cycle. National champion Sajan Prakash, who represented India at the Olympics in Tokyo, was inducted in the TOPS late — in the last two months. Among other sanctions, the swimmer had requested fees for his coach and pool in Dubai where he was training. However. his demands were rationalised after a discussion between the federation and the SAI. It is to be noted that Sajan receives a FINA scholarship of around $2000 a month for training.

The TOPS core group was not part of the discussion on Thursday. It is understood the federations were told to evaluate and assess the athletes’ performances by the end of November, including the demand for foreign coaches. The National Sports Federations (NSFs) have been told to give a plan for the run-up to the Asian and Commonwealth Games next year. Now that the MOC meeting has begun and with the new TOPS CEO in place, hopefully the athletes’ core and development groups would be formalised. The core group in particular needs evaluation and weeding out, especially of non-performing athletes.