New Delhi: The failure of Indian athletes to peak at Paris Olympics has led the Athletics Federation of India to mull a rejig in its qualification criteria and domestic calendar.
The AFI sent a 28-member contingent at Paris 2024, including 11 female athletes for the track and field competition that was conducted at Stade de France stadium between August 1 to August 11.
Apart from Neeraj Chopra, none of the Indian athletes could grab a podium spot. Neeraj also failed to defend his men’s javelin gold medal, getting upstaged by Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem to settle for silver.
The AFI is concerned at the athletes’ inability to perform at their optimum level at the Paris Games and are looking into possible reasons for it.
In order to sustain their performance in the future the AFI plans to remodel the qualification route and make alterations to its calendar, president Adille Sumariwalla said on Wednesday.
“To qualify for major international events the athletes will have to compete in a certain number of domestic competitions to earn valuable points,” he said on the sidelines of the fourth edition of South Asian Junior Athletics Championship in Chennai.
“A steady performance will be a big advantage to get a nod from the AFI selection panel. There was a sudden decline in the performance of the athletes in Paris. The athletes should have clocked a personal best or advance to the final of their respective events.”
’30 domestic meets’
The AFI hopes that increasing the number of domestic events and increasing the talent pool will enhance competition and aid in an improved show at the Asian Athletics Championships and World Athletics Championships next year.
“The athletes will get more opportunity to compete close to their homes. There is a plan to have at least 30 domestic competitions from next season,” Sumariwalla said.
The AFI also plans to do away with national preparatory camps to put focus on regional competitions.
“The athletes will train at regional centres and places of their choice. We expect a minimum of 1000 athletes in various centres across the county,” added the AFI president, also stressing on efforts to curb doping.
The AFI is concerned at the Indian athletes’ inability to perform at their optimum level at the Paris Olympics Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
