KT Irfan and M Sreeshankar had underperformed during a fitness trial that was mandated by the AFI.
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In what can be termed as a rather controversial statement, the President of the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), Adille J Sumariwalla, said that action would be taken against long jumper M Sreeshankar and 20km race walking athlete KT Irfan should they fail to perform well at the Tokyo Olympics. The AFI President said that the coaches of both athletes had given their assurances that the duo will perform well and return satisfactory results from The Games. The AFI President was unclear over what he meant by ‘good performances’, as asking the athletes to bring home medals and taking action against them if they fail to do so seems incredibly unfair.
“The coaches have promised that their respective athletes would give their best in Tokyo. Sreeshankar’s father and coach have assured of good performance from his athlete. If athletes do not perform well in the Olympics, we will take action against them,” said Sumariwalla in the AFI statement that announced the inclusion of Sreeshankar and Irfan in the Indian athletics team for the Olympic Games.
What might have caused the AFI President to make such a statement might be the fact that both athletes had underperformed during a fitness trial that was mandated by the AFI at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Youth Centre in Bengaluru for those athletes who missed the National Championships.
Their below-par performances raised a lot of doubts in the minds of those involved in selecting athletes for the Games. In the statement, Sumariwalla said that there was a strong opinion against the athletes’ participation at the Olympics. Apparently, many had wanted the two to be withdrawn from India’s Olympics contingent. Sreeshankar and Irfan will both participate in the Games this year.
Sreeshankar had qualified for the Tokyo Olympics after he recorded a national record of an incredible 8.26m jump at the Federation Cup in March. Irfan, on the other hand, was the first Indian track and field athlete to seal qualification for the Games, having done so as far back as in March 2019.
“In an emergency meeting, despite the strong opinion that both athletes should be withdrawn after they underperformed in the trials in Bengaluru, the Committee considered that the Federation had called only for trials to assess fitness and not form and arrived at the unanimous decision to not pull the two athletes out of the squad,” said the AFI.
President Sumariwalla said that the selectors’ view was that the athletes, especially those who met the qualification standards early on, needed to compete in the final selection trial and prove their performance, skills, and fitness ahead of The Games.
India has never been a force to reckon with when it comes to long-jump events, so the hesitation from the selectors is somewhat understandable. However, stating that the athletes would have to face action if they failed to perform well will do nothing but put unnecessary pressure on the two, who are undoubtedly already under a lot of pressure at the prospect of participating in a competition like the Olympics.
