Training camps for players of the state participating in 35th National Games is still a distant dream. On one side, the state government wants the list of names the participants and on the other hand JOA has declined to submit the names.
The National Games at Kerala are to be held from January 31 to February 14. JOA is authorized to send the ‘provincial list’ of state players to Organising Committee of National Games (OCNG) by November 30. December 31 is the last date for sending the final list bearing profile of state players.
Plan for hosting such camps at Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad from October 5 to November 20 failed due to the ongoing dispute. Government’s call for deciding the next dates on October 13 with sports associations also failed since none of the JOA representatives were invited.
Asked about the reason, JOA spokesperson Madhukant Pathak said that bylaws of Indian Olympic Association (IOA) nowhere allow government to know the names of the player. “The number list of players of 11 events including athletics, archery, boxing, hockey, handball, lawn bowls, wushu-taekwondo, volley ball, wrestling, rowing, trekking and canning eligible for performing at nationals was given to the sports department on August. Names cannot be given to the Government as players are replaced even at the last moment,” he added.
Reacting to IOA norms, sports director Dadan Choubey said, “Government cannot spend money on camps without getting the name list. It is important to recognize players by their names for security purpose. Only two or three associations have confirmed the names of their players. We are yet to receive names from hockey, football and athletics events. In order to handle confusion over the issue, sports secretary Vandana Dadel has called a meeting of JOA representatives and us on October 16. Thereafter, we will decide the final camp schedule.”
According to sources, the names of the players can be decided only after a camp or medical test is held. Every state’s olympic association is authorized to send the final players name to the OCNG.
Performance of the players is likely to be hampered if camps are not conducted. Also, they will have to perform without the basic facilities like kits. “Even if government fails to host camps, we have to send every player’s profile directly to OCNG Kerala as per the norms of IOA. Around 330 members consisting players and technical officials are supposed to take part in the upcoming National Games. They will depart for Kerala by January 25,” said Pathak.
Notably, in 2011, when Jharkhand hosted the 34th National Games, camps were organized since 2008 in four phases wherein the government had funded but not asked for names. The state bagged the fifth position with around 96 medals.