Even as the students from across the State are competing in different events of the Khel Mahakumbh, their coaches have mixed opinions about the arrangements made by the authorities.
They state that the arrangements are better than they were last time, some aspects still need improvement.
They cited the instance of the young sportspersons being given heavy oily food like puri-sabzi and said that the diet of the sportspersons should include milk, fruits or eggs. “However, such items are not being served to the players participating in the Khel Mahakumbh. Nutritious and balanced diet is important and they also influence the performance of the players. They cannot be expected to perform at their optimum level after they partake puri-sabzi,” said a coach while talking to The Pioneer.
“It has been four days since we arrived in Dehradun. The food served is mostly oily whereas the proper diet for a player should also have milk, fruits and eggs. However, none of these food items is being given to the players. It is common knowledge that heavy and oily food does not provide strength to the players engaged in the sports. But things are such that there is nothing we can do,” the coach added.
Another coach who came from another district echoed the same sentiment and said, “The arrangements of the Khel Mahakumbh are better this time than they were last year. However, the food arrangements made for the players are not very good. We have also asked the person in charge to change the menu. But nothing has happened so far.”
Apart from the dietary issues, the participating students from Udham Singh Nagar and Tehri districts were not provided with the kits meant for the participants of the Khel Mahakumbh.
A coach said while talking to this correspondent, “We were told that there were no funds for the sports kit. But as soon as we reached Dehradun we learnt that players from the others districts were provided the kits. The more important content of the sports kit was the tracksuit which was not given to our team due to which they all are playing in shorts in the winter season.”
The coach further said, “We motivated our students by telling them that participating in Khel Mahakumbh is such a big opportunity. They practiced well but ultimately there was not enough support behind us.”