Why India struggles for global medals

The Sports Authority of Indiarsquos SAI National Centre of Excellence NCoE in Kandivli is spread across 37 acres But the extent of the shambles at the centre is a poor reflection of the facilities our athletes deserve What was once a thriving ground for development of promising athletes across disciplines now houses trainees from only two sportsmdashwrestling and hockey And the hockey turf is in such unplayable condition that the girlsrsquo team has travelled in Bhopal to trainThe hockey turf at the Kandivli centreIf sportsloving citizens of India wonder why podium occupants are few and far between at the Olympics your answer lies in sporting apathy such as this The reduced number of disciplines is due to inadequate improper training facilities for other sportsmidday visited the Kandivli centre recently to find that most of its facilities are in terrible shape The synthetic athletic track lacks grip and is slippery due to poor upkeep It has holes at different places making it unsafe to train on Even the hockey turf which ought to be green is unclean and has turned greyish black Again unsafe to play onAlso ReadVinesh Phogat drives up endorsement fee demands after Paris OlympicsNo lack of funds hereCan this be put down to a lack of funds Not quite Currently the National Centres of Excellence NCOE here houses a total of 100 male and female traineesmdashwrestling 60 and hockey 40mdashbesides eight wrestling coaches and two hockey coaches The body has the funds for an upgrade but an ongoing power struggle at the administrative and political level is hampering developmentThe worn out and unhygienic hockey turf at the Sports Authority of India campus in KandivliA SAI official in the know of things spoke to midday on condition of anonymity ldquoThe land on which this facility is situated belongs to the state government and so SAI which is run by the central government requires a No Objection Certificate NOC from the state authorities to build new infrastructure Efforts are on to amicably resolve this issue between the state and central governmentrdquo said the officialThe algaeinfested slippery athletics track has holesldquoThe Centre plans to develop a multi sports complex with state of the art infrastructure including a High Performance Centre for Sports Science an Indoor Multipurpose Hall a 300bed hostel a new hockey turf of international standard with flood lights and a refurbished athletics track among other thingsrdquo added the official As part of the Fit India scheme SAI continues to run the Come and Play scheme which is why many locals use the facilities here but clearly itrsquos unsafe and unhygienicNCOErsquos 23 sports disciplinesldquoSAIrsquos priority continues to be the 23 NCOE disciplines archery athletics boxing cycling fencing football gymnastic hockey handball judo kabaddi khokho kayaking amp canaoieng power lifting rowing shooting swimming taekwondo table tennis volleyball weightlifting wrestling wushu and the inclusion or exclusion of disciplines at any NCOE is made at the SAI Head Office in New Delhi This is made on the basis of the available NCOE standard infrastructureland local talent availability etc Currently the Kandivli centre is producing top class athletes in hockey and wrestling SAIrsquos jurisdiction is spread across Maharashtra Goa and Dadra Nagar Haveli and DamanDiu There are two NCOEs in MaharashtramdashMumbai two sports disciplines Aurangabad six sports disciplines and two SAI Training Centres STCs in Goardquo the official explainedA female athlete practising shot put in poor ground conditionsOn August 16 and 17 the Mumbai Suburban District Athletics Association MSDAA held a districtlevel state selection meet here Arthur Fernandes General Secretary MSDAA highlighted the issues faced by the athletes ldquoThe SAI Kandivli ground is not conducive for any sports meet The SAI authorities must urgently look at repairing the athletic track if not relay it completely The surface can be dangerous for athletes as there are holes in it There is algae formed across the surface at many places making it slippery Since we had booked the venue in advance and the dates couldnrsquot be changed we went ahead with our meet But if the condition of this track remains the same I will have no option but to shift to another venue next timerdquo Fernandes saidInjury danger for athletesAnother athletics coach who trains kids here also feared for their safety ldquoMy students are from middleclass and lower middleclass backgrounds and have financial constraints Here we are allowed to train for free but I ensure the children do not use the entire track as itrsquos unsafe and can injure them There are so many enthusiastic athletes who train here Itrsquos unfortunate to see this track in such a pathetic staterdquo said the coach One female athlete who was training next to the track said ldquoI come here for shot put practice despite the ground being in bad shape Whatever the reason ultimately we athletes suffer How can we win international medals if our grassroot system is like thisrdquo she rued2015Year the highprofile centre was established with facilities to train athletes from multiple sports