IOA felicitation ceremony faces hiccups

Some of the winners were unable to receive the display cheques during Sunday’s function because of their names being misspelt.

In an embarrassing moment, the organisers forgot to mention the name of bronze medal winning wrestler Divya Kakran.

The Indian Olympic Association’s (IOA) maiden attempt to provide cash rewards to Asian Games medalists was not without hiccups. Some of the winners were unable to receive the display cheques during Sunday’s function because of their names being misspelt.

“I apologise to the athletes who might not get the cheques right now. The names had been misspelt on some and they have gone for correction but haven’t arrived yet. Please be assured, you will get your cheques as soon as they come,” IOA president Narinder Batra explained.

In fact, some of those who received only bouquets initially managed to get their display cheques towards the end of the function. The MC also missed out on Divya Kakran’s name during the function but Batra apologised for that as well and ensured that the award was handed over to her parents by Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Rathore.