Sports Ministry doing nothing for Olympic-bound athletes? Get some reality check -
Sports 12-May-2021
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Recently, the second wave of coronavirus pandemic has once again put a full-stop to all the sporting activities across the nation starting from the India Open (badminton) 2021 being postponed. Amid the COVID surge, the Sports Ministry is coming forward to assist the Olympic-bound sportspersons for their overseas training as well as tournaments. It will help them to get adequate time to be ready for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. Below are some of the initiatives that have been taken by the Ministry
1. Sports Ministry to spend Rs 73.14 lakh on Olympic-bound sailors' European training stint
Tokyo Olympic-bound sailors Nethra Kumanan (laser radial), Vishnu Saravanan (laser standard) as well as KC Ganapathy and Varun Thakkar (skiff 49er) will train in Europe ahead of the Tokyo Olympics after the Sports Ministry's Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) on Friday approved their respective proposals. The total cost of international training for these athletes is Rs 73.14 lakh.
2. SAI sanctioned Rs 71 lakh for weightlifter Mirabai Chanu's training program in the US
The Sports Authority of India Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) has sanctioned around Rs 70.8 lakh for India's ace weightlifter Mirabai Chanu. She is set to train in the USA for one and a half months until the Tokyo Games.
Also Read: Know the journey of Pranati Nayak, India's only gymnast at the Olympics!
3. Vinesh Phogat gets financial assistance of Rs 87 lakh under TOPs scheme
Vinesh was inducted into the Target Olympic Podium Scheme in 2015 and the total amount she has been supported with in the current Olympic cycle is Rs 87 lakhs.
Also Read: Olympic-bound shooting team leaves for C'ship, training to Croatia
4. SAI spends more than Rs 3 crore for Indian Shooting team to train & compete in Croatia
SAI will bear the expenses incurred during the country’s Olympic-bound shooting team’s upcoming competition-cum-training tour of Croatia. The entire tour will cost more than Rs 3 crore. A 15-member Indian shooting team took off for Croatian capital Zagreb, where it will undergo a training camp before leaving for Osijek to take part in the European Championships (May 20 to June 6). Following this, there will be combined ISSF World Cup (June 22 to July 3). Soon after this, the team will be directly departing for Tokyo Olympics.
Also Read: Sports Ministry creates special support cell to support ex-international athletes, coaches amid Covid-19
Apart from such initiatives, the Ministry, with an aim to ensure that ex-international athletes and coaches have access to medical, financial, and logistical support during Covid-19, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) along with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) have joined hands to create a special support cell.