Former archers bank on SAI, Ministry to help athletes

The Supreme Court decision to set aside the Archery Association of India’s new constitution and strike down its elections, held in December last, may leave the national federation without an elected body for a few weeks.

Published : May 01, 2019 20:33 IST , Kolkata

Arjuna and Dronacharya award winner Sanjeeva Singh feels the Ministry and SAI can take care of the athletes in need.
Arjuna and Dronacharya award winner Sanjeeva Singh feels the Ministry and SAI can take care of the athletes in need.
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Arjuna and Dronacharya award winner Sanjeeva Singh feels the Ministry and SAI can take care of the athletes in need.

 

The Supreme Court decision to set aside the Archery Association of India’s new constitution and strike down its elections, held in December last, may leave the national federation without an elected body for a few weeks, but it will not have any impact on the archers, feel some yesteryear archers.

According to Sanjeeva Singh, an Arjuna and Dronachrya award winner, there should not be any real concern as the Union Sports Ministry and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) would take care of the archers' needs.

“After the federation was de-recognised (by the Ministry), the Sports Ministry and SAI did everything. So, there should not be any impact on the archers' camps and participation in international competitions,” said Sanjeeva.

About the effect of the development on long-term planning and other activities, Sanjeeva said, “As per the Supreme Court order, the elections will be held in four weeks and a new body will be in place to resume the work of the federation.”

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Purnima Mahato, a Dronacharya award-winning coach who is working at the national camp in Pune, expressed similar views. “I don't see any immediate impact as the teams will go for World Cup II and III. But let's see how the new body functions, whether it accepts the current calendar and programme which is in place,” said Purnima.

Olympian and national selector Chhangte Lalremsanga, however, was apprehensive. “The court has given four weeks for elections. If elections do not happen, then for how long can SAI and Ministry handle archery? The performance of the archers went down when there was no proper federation in place,” said Lalremsanga.

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