SPORTS

Time for a new sports order
We need to focus on hockey and cleaning up the sports administration
M. S. Unnikrishnan

After a hectic 2010, it will be practice time for the Indian sportspersons, particularly the elite ones in reckoning for an Olympic berth, in 2011. After winning one gold and two bronze medals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, India fancy their chances of grabbing more medals in the 2012 London Olympics.

Another event that’s eagerly looked forward to is the World Cup Cricket Championship, to be held in the subcontinent for the second time, from February to April.

In the AFC Asia Cup at Doha which started from January 7, India have been placed in the tough Group C, along with Australia, Bahrain and South Korea. India qualified for the Asia Cup finals after 26 years, and the team has been training hard for the big event.

But the focus this year will be on hockey, which has been in turmoil for many years. The advent of Hockey India, and the training by Spanish coach Jose Brasa, brought about only marginal improvement in the team’s standing. But the game is in far from a healthy state, as two rival bodies, Hockey India and the Indian Hockey Federation are trying to take control though the Sports Ministry has recognised only Hockey India.

More than the sports events, attention will be riveted on the outcome of the CWG inquiry in which Suresh Kalmadi and Athletics Association of India secretary-general Lalit Bhanot are prime suspects.

Many of the National Sports Federations are also slated to hold elections this year, and the Sports Ministry guidelines restricting the tenure of key office-bearers, may bring a new sports order in the country.

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