The Hindu : Sport / Generalia : IOA names Kalmadi to head C'wealth Games organising panel

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Tuesday, Nov 02, 2004

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Sport - Generalia

IOA names Kalmadi to head C'wealth Games organising panel

By Our Sports Reporter

NEW DELHI, NOV. 1. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on Monday named its president, Suresh Kalmadi, as the chairman of the 2010 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee. At its annual general body meeting, the IOA also authorised Mr. Kalmadi to form the rest of the committee.

Coming as it did about a week after the Union Government nominated the Sports Minister, Sunil Dutt, as the chairman of the Games Organising Committee, Mr. Kalmadi's nomination has led to a piquant situation, with two chairmen in place, at least for the moment, for the task of organising the same games.

While asserting that it was the prerogative of the IOA to form the organising committee for the games as per convention and International Olympic Committee (IOC) norms, Mr. Kalmadi, re-elected IOA President for a third term on Monday, however, said that there was no conflict of interest with the Government. He said that the IOA had proposed Mr. Dutt's name as the head of the Steering Committee for the Games.

"There is no confusion as such and if there is any we will sort it out,'' Mr. Kalmadi said adding that the minutes of the meeting conducted by the Government did not mention anything about the post Mr. Dutt was appointed to. "The full committee would be in place in two months,'' he added.

Besides getting the city ready with the civic and sporting infrastructure by 2010, Mr. Kalmadi said that it was imperative for India to host major international competitions leading up to the Games. "If we have to prepare our sportspersons for the Commonwealth Games, international competitions at home would be a necessity and for that we will seek Rs. 1,000 crores from the government,'' he said.

Earlier, the General Assembly, attended by 150 members, unanimously elected Mr. Kalmadi as President of the IOA. His name was proposed by V. K. Malhotra, Randhir Singh, B. S. Adityan and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, Randhir Singh, will continue to be the Secretary General, for the fifth term.

There were minor changes in the list of council members, picked by Mr. Kalmadi after he was authorised to name his team. The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) chief, K. P. S. Gill, who was vice-president in the outgoing body, practically found no place in the reshuffle. He was named chairman of the Sports Infrastructure Commission.

Former president of the Indian Amateur Boxing Association, A. K. Mattoo, has been chosen as the treasurer, replacing Mr. Raj Chopra.

The meeting discussed the performance of the Indian contingent at the Athens Olympics through the Chef de Mission's report. Mr. Kalmadi reeled off figures from the Busan Asian Games as well as the Manchester Commonwealth Games of 2002 to project the healthy state of Indian sport. He also pointed out the strides made in shooting, archery and athletics at the Olympics, but admitted that the IOA was not completely happy with the Athens show, when queried about the performance in hockey.

"We need more support, from the Government as well as from the industry,'' Mr. Kalmadi said. He would not agree with the suggestion that countries that apparently spent much less than India for the preparation of their teams had won more medals than us at Athens. India had just one silver, won by shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, at the Games.

The IOA took a dim view of ordinances issued by the state governments of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan in controlling sports bodies in their states.

"We will not tolerate government interference in any way,'' Mr. Kalmadi said. A committee headed by Mr. R. K. Anand will review the ordinances issued by the governments of UP and Rajasthan and submit its report within a week.

"If we find that government was dictating terms, we will take all necessary actions, including imposing sanctions against the respective states,'' Mr. Kalmadi said. Such states would not be chosen to host the National Games, he said.

Though the Asian Games in Doha and Commonwealth Games in Melbourne are two years from now, the IOA has appointed chefs de mission for the games. The Sports Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Ramlal Thakur, will be head of the contingent to Doha while former president of the Basketball Federation of India, B. K. Saha, will be in charge in Melbourne.

The principal IOA office-bearers: President: Mr. Suresh Kalmadi. Sr. vice-president: Mr. V. K. Malhotra. Vice-presidents: Messrs Abhay Singh Chautala, Priya Ranjan Das Munsi, J. S. Gehlot, Digvijay Singh, , Raj Chopra, M. C. Chowhan, V. D. Nanavati, Avinash C. Kohli, K. Murugan, Asoke Ghosh and Mrs.Vidya Stokes. Secretary General: Mr. Randhir Singh. Treasurer: Mr. A. K. Mattoo. Joint-secretaries: Messrs Lalit Bhanot, S. M. Bali, Harish Sharma, Ashutosh Sharma, Rana G. S. Sodhi and Mrs. Amrit Bose.

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