The Indian Olympic Association on Monday said it will “wait and watch” for at least a month before taking any call on Tokyo Olympics participation.
“Being the head of IOA, the health and well being of our athletes and officials are of prime concern to me,” IOA President Narinder Batra said.
“Whatever decisions the IOA takes will be for the welfare of our athletes. But right now we are just waiting and monitoring the situation on a daily basis.
“I assure the people that we won’t let anyone down and our decisions will be in the best interest of our athletes,” he added.
IOA Secretary General Rajeev Mehta put a timeline to this wait and watch approach, saying it would be at least a month before anything is decided.
“We will wait and watch for 4 to 5 weeks and then come to any decision after consultation with the International Olympic Committee and the sports ministry,” Mehta said.
“The situation is not that bad in our country as compared to other nations,” he added.
When contacted and asked if India is also contemplating acting on the lines of Canada, Sports Secretary Radhey Shyam Julaniya said the ministry is not in consultation with anyone at the moment.
“Your question is hypothetical and the govt cannot react to hypothetical questions,” he said.
“We are not in consultation with anyone right now. The ministry can’t keep giving advisories,” Julaniya added.