NEW DELHI: The stakeholders who matter – athletes – have reacted with anger at Indian Olympic Association president Narinder Batra’s assertion that the Commonwealth Games is a waste of time and the country should consider a permanent pullout.
Batra, who is also the president of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), showed neither circumspection nor statesmanship when speaking at an event in Bengaluru on Tuesday, where he made the outrageous claim that the level of competition at the CWG is not particularly high and that India should consider a pullout to improve its own standards.
Considering that the time when India’s “own standards” even in the sport he heads internationally – hockey – were exceptional only in the distant past, and that as IOA’s chief he should be as aware as anyone that India ranked a lowly 67th (emphasis ours) at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Batra’s views are unreal to say the least.
Batra had earlier called for an Indian boycott of the 2022 CWG in Birmingham over the axing of shooting from the Games program due to logistical issues. Shooting has been a major contributor to India’s CWG tally and the nation stands second, with 134 medals, in the overall count won from the sport.
“It is not acceptable,” one of India’s currently most successful table tennis players G Sathiyan, who claimed two Silvers and a Bronze in the 2018 edition in Gold Coast, told PTI.
Boxing star Vijender Singh, who is the first and only male pugilist with an Olympic medal to his credit, said Batra’s statement undermines athletes’ hard work.
“It is heartbreaking. By this logic, India should not send teams to invitational tournaments either because the level of competition is not like the Olympics or the world championship even there,” said the boxer who has two Silver and a Bronze from the three CWGs he competed in.
“Why belittle the athletes’ achievements? And in any case, CWG has strong boxing nations such as England and Ireland in fray,” he added.
The 2014 Glasgow CWG Gold-medallist shuttler Parupalli Kashyap noted: “It is ridiculous to think of boycotting the Commonwealth Games. I don’t think the standard is low. I didn’t have it easy when I beat all these players during the 2010 edition (when he won Bronze) and the 2014 Games.”
“It is not like we are winning all the Gold medals. Even in badminton, there are teams like Malaysia, England who are tough,” he added.
In fact, 2010 CWG Gold-medallist discus thrower Krishna Poonia said the Commonwealth competition in athletics is stiffer than the Asian Games, which is generally perceived to be tougher by the sporting fraternity.
“For athletics, CWG is world-class, the competition is of higher level than the Asian Games,” she told PTI.
A top official from the national federation of a prominent Olympic sport asked if Batra would deem the competition good enough if shooting is brought back into the CWG fold.
“Someone should ask him will the CWG regain significance if shooting is accepted back on the roster. Maybe he will have a different view to offer,” the official told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
“Why deride the athletes who have worked hard for their medals at CWG because you are unhappy about the exclusion of one sport? CWG won’t die if India pulls out,” he added.
Two-time CWG Gold-medallist weightlifter Sathish Sivalingam said a medal at the Games provides job security to a lot of athletes and that shouldn’t be taken away from them.
“I am completely against the pullout (talk). The Commonwealth Games are a big event for us. Medal-winning performances in the CWG bring a lot of incentives like jobs and money etc. So for us, this competition is important,” he said.
Former India hockey captain Zafar Iqbal, who was part of the 1980 Olympic Gold medal-winning team, was surprised by Batra’s comment.
“That’s a ridiculous statement coming from a man who is holding numerous important positions in national as well as international sports federations… for an athlete every tournament is crucial,” he said.
“Commonwealth Games is the biggest competition after Olympics in terms of participation of countries. 72 countries took part in the last Commonwealth Games. And if you talk about hockey, all top nations like Australia, New Zealand, and Great Britain are there,” he added.
Archer Rahul Banerjee, a Gold-medallist at the 2010 Delhi CWG, pointed out that all talk of pullout started only after shooting was excluded and the administrators ought to answer why the competitiveness of the event didn’t matter before that.
“If Commonwealth Games were so easy why only a few disciplines like wrestling, shooting and boxing earn India the bulk of medals?” he asked.
“Obviously we can’t compare CWG with the Olympics which is above all, even the World Championships. So does that mean we will not value a World Championship medal and won’t send a team there?” he fumed.
Former (emphasis ours) Archery Association (AAI) secretary general Paresh Nath Mukherjee made an even more outrageous claim than Batra. If Mukherjee is to be believed, “there can’t be a bigger truth” than what the IOA chief said.
“He has hit the nail on the head. Commonwealth Games has no relevance in the Olympics. It’s a phoney Games. It has no value and only poor and foolish countries like us make such hype about CWG.
“It’s nothing but waste of money,” he asserted.
If that be the case, it begs the question, why the outrage? Why waste so much emotional energy and angst over such a waste of money. Since, barring cricket, pretty much all sports are resource challenged, AAI (where since he is no more a part of the power structure he really has no skin in the game) should spend whatever money it has available to it elsewhere in “more productive pursuits”. Why act as a cheerleader for someone who wants to put a spoke in the wheel of the opportunities coming the way of athletes from other disciplines. Included in this are of course the players representing India’s national game, the discipline Batra himself heads?
