Task force to draft action plan for three Olympics

The Sports Minister Vijay Goel stated that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved the constitution of the committee which would be in operation for three months or till it prepares its report.

Abhinav Bindra will spearhead the task force entrusted with the responsibility to prepare an action plan for the next three Olympics.

Former All England champion and Dronacharya awardee coach P. Gopichand, who guided Saina Nehwal and P.V. Sindhu to a bronze and silver medal in the last 2012 and 2016 Olympics respectively, along with former World and Olympic champion Abhinav Bindra will spearhead a Sports Ministry "task force" that has been entrusted with the responsibility to prepare an action plan for the next three Olympics.

The Sports Minister Vijay Goel stated that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved the constitution of the committee which would be in operation for three months or till it prepares its report.

The CEO of Olympic Gold Quest and former hockey captain Viren Rasquinha, hockey coach Bladev Singh, the Dean of the Faculty of Applied Sciences of Manav Rachna International University, Prof. GL Khanna, Chief Editor of Times Group online, Rajesh Kalra, Om Pathak of the School Sports Promotion Foundation, the Director General of the Sports Authority of Gujarat, Sandeep Pradhan, will be the other members of the committee.

While Sandeep Pradhan would serve as the convenor, the committee will have the authority to invite other sports experts if required. The committee is expected to suggest various measures for the identification of core group of athletes and effective preparation for the Olympics in 2020, 2024 and 2028.

It will address all areas of sports excellence and suggest mechanisms to form a world class sports system within the country and also recommend the method of preparation in terms of international competition and foreign training wherever required.

Meanwhile, the Union Sports Ministry had also recently reinforced its Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) with Abhinav Bindra as the Chairman. Renowned sports stars Prakash Padukone, Karnam Malleswari, PT Usha and Anjali Bhagwat will be part of the committee.

Seasoned experts of sports administration Anil Khanna and Muralidharan Raja, apart from secretary of Railways Sports Promotion Board, Rekha Yadav, SAI Executive Director Dr. SS Roy and Joint Secretary of Union Sports Ministry Inder Dhamija will be the other members of the committee.

This committee, with an initial term of one year, would prepare a revised procedure, based on the experience prior to the Rio Olympics, to go about the task of supporting the right candidates for the Tokyo Olympics.