The dust hasn’t settled on the 2026 Asian Games and one is already speaking about the 2028 LA Olympics. Is it too early? A voice in the head seems to scream: let them chill for a bit. But then another voice, equally shrill, asks: Is that what the best in the world are doing?
There is a post doing the rounds on X that shows Abhay Chautala, former president of the Indian Olympic Association, in the warm-up area along with Wrestling Federation of India president Sanjay Singh, getting a photo clicked with Aman Sehrawat, who had just won gold in the 57kg category. There are two problems with the act. First, administrators are not allowed in that area. These are not isolated incidents. Indian sports administrators, as shown by such acts, often seem to feel that they own the sport and the athlete. It’s about time this stops. At their core, administrators are facilitators and they need to get that too.
Second, for the photo, they allegedly pulled in Antim Panghal, who was 10 minutes away from her gold medal match.
Squash player Anahat Singh, 18, is on the rise too. Suruchi Singh, 20, redeemed herself with a gold in the 10m air pistol mixed team, an Olympic event. India, for instance, has 48 able-bodied athletes in the TOPS group. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, India won 2 medals. At Tokyo, the medal count went up to 7, including Neeraj Chopra’s gold. And in Paris 2024, the count was 6 medals.
Kumkum isn’t alone. And that is a good thing. Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal have beaten the best in the world, as have some of the boxers. Give them the system they deserve. Not just exposure trips but stability — in coaching and in method. One might argue that is far too many. So, getting into TOPS must be far more stringent. The same rule must apply to designating a sport as a priority. Get them to speak to every coach of every discipline and make them listen. They know what to say and how to get results, (even in the Indian system). Build a coaching team that cares about results; about the athletes and not earning another Dronacharya award. Before Sjoerd Marijne (women’s hockey) and Santiago Nieva (women’s boxing) returned for their second stints, their respective sports were a mess. But they knew that the problem isn’t talent. Rather, petty inter-personal rivalry was dragging down the teams. Cut that out and focus on the goal, which is medals. Make Marijne and Nieva mentor other coaches too.
