Tuesday, May 07, 2002
Tuesday, May 07, 2002 |
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Athletics
By S. Thyagarajan
As the third one in this year's series is poised to go full steam ahead at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Tuesday, it's not easy to overcome the mood of pessimism. For all the efforts put in, for all the sophisticated methods of training and build-up, for all the talk of medals, competitive athletics in India is yet to attain the level it has reached in China, Japan, Korea, the Middle East and even the fecundity noticed in nearby Sri Lanka. Shifting the blame on the Amateur Athletics Federation of India is nothing but escapism. Undeniably, there is a system to AAFI's preparations these days and no longer can it be termed haphazard and disorganised. If the achievements are not commensurate with the inputs by the administrators and coaches, the inconsistency of the athletes is to blame. Indian athletics has been dominated by spectacular individuals over the past few decades... Milkha Singh, Gurubachan Singh Randhawa, Sriram Singh, P.T. Usha, and to a certain extent Shiny Wilson. In today's context, the `star' content is inexistent and even the few who hit the headlines in international meets, like K.M. Beenamol at Sydney, pop in and out without making a real impact as Usha did in the Asiads and Asian meets. Viewed against this backdrop, one can only hope that the current season of meets will be utilised well to establish the credentials of a handful of competitors, perceived by coaches as good enough by Asian yardstick to hit the jackpot at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, the Asian Track and Field Meet at Colombo in August, and the Asian Games at Pusan in September-October. If the circuit meets — two of which were held during the last week in New Delhi and Bangalore — are to be regarded as the starting blocks to stardom, what has been accomplished so far would not generate a great deal of optimism. The best has easily been the `double' by sprinter Anil Kumar with one performance equalling the National record (10.33s) in New Delhi. Unfortunately, Anil will not be in action here after being rendered hors de combat during the second meet at Bangalore on Sunday when he hurt the quadriceps, about 20 metres from the finish. Though it would not be appropriate to expect the competitors to peak now, what needs to be stressed is the fact that the AAFI has made it mandatory to the campers to test their mettle in the 15-17 selected events.
All eyes on...
Among the prominent stars who will be in action on Tuesday are Shakti Singh, Bahadur Singh, Ramachandran, Sanjay Rai, Jagdish Bishnoi, Beenamol, Rachita Mistry, Geetha Manral, Neelam Singh, Kavitha Pandey, C. Latha and Anuradha Biswal. Expectations of spectacular performances are high as the athletes get into action under floodlights on the morrow. The late evening start is designed to protect the athletes from the searing summer heat of this metropolis. Tamil Nadu can take legitimate pride in hosting at least one domestic circuit meet during the last decade. And the credit for this goes to the initiative and enthusiasm displayed by the President of TNAAA, W.I. Dawaram and Secretary, Neela Sivalingaswamy, and of course, to the team of highly motivated officials from the State Police. Of the seven meets held under the TNAAA banner, four were held at Nagercoil, one in Coimbatore and two in the city. Explaining what Tamil Nadu had in store for the competitors here, Mr. Jagan M. Seshadri, a member of the Organising Committee, told a media conference on Sunday that the circuit meet will conform to all the technical requirements of an international-level competition. There will be photo-finish cameras, false start detectors, and equipment to handle dope tests. And Mr. Jagan Seshadri was hoping for a turnout of 100-odd competitors to elevate the quality of competition. Mr. K. Rajendran, IGP and a member of the host committee, informed that TNAAA would generate funds around Rs. five lakhs for the meet and the prizemoney for the winners would be Rs. 10,000 for first place, 5000 for second and 3000 for third. He also revealed a plan to send Ms. Sangeetha, the State's most promising high jumper, for training abroad as a prelude to her participation in the World Junior championships at Sherbrooke (Canada) in July. Sangeetha, however, would be missing the circuit meet because of exams. Mr. C.K. Valson, Technical Director of the meet, said that Tamil Nadu would field 10-15 competitors to add to the intensity of the competition, while Mr. Shilendra Babu, Joint Police Commissioner, and a member of the Organising Committee, dwelt on the sequence of meets held under the auspices of the Tamil Nadu Amateur Athletics Association. Mr.Walter Dawaram, President, TNAAA, will inaugurate the meet. The events: Men: Javelin throw, 100 metres, shot put, 800 metres, long jump, hammer throw, 400 metres, discus throw, 5000 metres, 4 x 100 relay; Women: 100m hurdles, long jump, 100 metres, 3000 metres, 400 metres, discus throw, 4 x 100 relay. The Tamil Nadu competitors invited for the meet: Men: Ashok Kumar (LJ), Selvam (javelin), K. Shankar (5000 metres), Lakshminarayanan (LJ), Venkataraman (400 metres); Women: K.N. Priya (100 h), A. Amudha (100 h), Nooshin Rajendran (LJ), Arokya Mary (400 m), Krishnaveni (3000 m), Muthulakshmi (100), Shanti (hammer, discus).
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