There is great joy in winning an individual race and there is greater joy in a collective effort bearing fruit. I can say without fear of contradiction that this has been true, through the present Olympic cycle, in offering India’s best athletes the opportunity to prepare themselves for Tokyo2020.
One of the most important facets of this Olympic campaign, extended by a year because of the Pandemic, is the remarkably high-level of co-ordination among the many parts of the Indian sports ecosystem. It has allowed a vast majority of our Olympic hopefuls the opportunity to prepare without interruption and worry.
The coming together of key stakeholders, National Sports Federations, the Indian Olympic Association and the Sports Authority of India, on one platform has helped the campaign stay on track. It brings in an unprecedented level of transparency in clearing requests from athletes for support beyond what is secured through the Annual Calendar of Competition and Training.
As a part of the Mission Olympic Cell which oversees the Target Olympic Podium Scheme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, I have seen how well prepared the TOPS researchers are when it comes to performance. The diligence with which data is collated and analysed is a fair indication of the professional approach India has adopted. From helping secure ideal training locations to clearing sparring partners, from securing the services of the best possible coaches to paying for experienced and efficient support staff, from making arrangements for travel and stay to ensuring that their training and competition plan was not impacted much by the pandemic, the Indian ecosystem has stood as one.
A salient feature of the way Mission Olympic Cell deals with proposals from athletes, more often than not backed by the respective National Sports Federations, is the speed at which things have been approved. As someone who has represented India at the highest level, I can tell you that such short turnaround times were unheard of until now. Of course, the uncertainty imposed on everyone by the pandemic weighed in heavily at the Mission Olympic Cell clearing most proposals without batting an eyelid. In more normal times, we would spend a bit more time scrutinising each proposal.
The thought is to not add the stresse to an athlete with any delays in the run up to the Olympics. there are lessons for everyone and the coming Olympics will only see things get better when all National Sports Federations and athletes become aware of and comply with the basic diligence that is needed in Government matters. The team spirit and the manner in which Indian sport is now drawing professional management will be of huge help in the long run.
The writer is an Olympian and President of the Athletics Federation of India