Latest news with #AsianGames
Time of India
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Time of India
AFI plans robust monitoring system to prepare Indian athletes for 2026 international events
Nagpur: The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) established a comprehensive monitoring system to enhance the performance of the Indian track and field team for the 2026 Commonwealth and Asian Games. The 2026 Commonwealth Games are scheduled to take place from July 23 to August 2 in Glasgow, while the Asian Games will be held from September 19 to October 4 in Japan. Eleven months following the decentralisation of national coaching camps after the 2024 Paris Olympic Games held in France from July 26 to August 11, the results were promising at the Gumi Asian Athletics Championships in South Korea, held from May 27 to 31, and in domestic competitions, according to AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla. During a one-day meeting in New Delhi on Friday with all stakeholders, including govt and private entities, Sumariwalla addressed the successful decentralisation training model. He noted initial concerns regarding doping and declining performance as top athletes trained at various centres across the country post-decentralisation. "But both issues were successfully tackled due to a good monitoring system," Sumariwalla, vice president of World Athletics, said. He added, "The national team finished second with 24 medals, eight of them gold, behind China in the medal tally at the continental meet. Several national records were also improved in Gumi, which augurs well for the future." To achieve significant impact in continental and global track and field events, Sumariwalla urged all stakeholders to collaborate. "There is a large pool of over 1,000 athletes, including elite training across various centres. All stakeholders, including departments and private entities, should work in tandem for the holistic development of track and field in the country," he emphasized. Sumariwalla also called on stakeholders to adhere strictly to AFI guidelines on the annual competition calendar to provide more opportunities for promising athletes. "Domestic competition has become more competitive. AFI has also introduced regional competitions. Private institutions and govt departments should encourage athletes to compete on home ground rather than send them abroad to participate in low-key events," he added. Addressing the issue of doping, Sumariwalla urged all stakeholders to take strict action against offenders. "AFI has a no needle policy and zero tolerance towards doping. Accountability of officials and coaches at the district and state levels whose athletes test positive for performance-enhancing drugs should be enforced. Strict punishment will act as a deterrent."
NDTV
10 hours ago
- Sport
- NDTV
Athletics Federation Of India Conceptualising Robust Monitoring System To Enhance Performance
With the Asian and Commonwealth Games lined up next year, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) is planning to implement a "robust monitoring system" to enhance the performance of its athletes and increase the number of medals. Indian track and field athletes have traditionally done well at the Asian Games and the AFI wants to take that success a few notches higher at the 2026 continental showpiece in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan and also improve the tally in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. AFI has been encouraged by the fact that nearly 11 months after the decentralisation of the national coaching camps post the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, the overall results showed marked improvement at the Asian Championships in South Korea last month and the domestic competitions. AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla said there were fears that the decentralised training model could be counterproductive, but, on the contrary, there have been a lot of positives. "There was apprehension of doping and not-so-encouraging performance as top athletes were training across the country at different centres after decentralisation. But both the issues were successfully tackled due to a good monitoring system," said Sumariwalla, World Athletics vice-president, during a meeting with government and private entities on the successful decentralisation training model, on Friday. "The national team finished second with 24 medals, eight of them gold behind China in the medal tally in the continental meet. Several national records were also improved in Gumi (Asian Championships), which augurs well for the future," he added. He urged the stakeholders to work together for the common good of athletics. "There is a big pool of over 1,000 athletes, including elite training across various centres. All the stakeholders, including departments and private entities, should work in tandem for holistic development of track and field in the country." He asked the stakeholders to strictly follow AFI guidelines on annual competition calendar to give more opportunities to promising athletes. "Domestic competition has become more competitive. AFI has also introduced regional competitions. Private institutions and government departments should encourage athletes to compete on home ground rather than send athletes abroad to compete in low key events," he added. On the doping menace, Sumariwalla urged the stakeholders to stay vigilant. "AFI has no needle policy and zero tolerance to doping. But accountability of the officials/coaches at the district/state level whose athletes test positive for performance enhancing drugs should be fixed. Strict punishment will act as a deterrent," he added. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Indian Express
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
‘Captain Harmanpreet Singh wanted me to continue but I had made up my mind': Lalit Upadhyay on retirement
Many in the Indian team, including captain Harmanpreet Singh, wanted Lalit Upadhyay to not retire from international hockey but the 32-year-old midfielder said that he had already made up his mind before making the announcement. Lalit made the announcement in an Instagram post, thus bringing the curtains down on a storied career in which he won medals at consecutive Olympics, an Asian Games gold and bronze and a Commonwealth Games silver among a host of other medals and trophies. 'I am almost 32 years old and I felt that now is the time to bid adieu,' Lalit is quoted as saying by PTI. 'I wanted to retire while being at the peak and despite the ligament injury, my fitness and form have been great.' Lalit retires with 67 goals in 183 matches for India. His decision came at the end of a horrific run for the team in the FIH Pro League in which they lost seven matches on the bounce. Lalit said that this had nothing to do with his decision. 'I have taken this decision myself. I did not want to drag myself. Many people, including (captain) Harmanpreet Singh, wanted me to keep playing but I had made up my mind,' he said. A post shared by Lalit Upadhyay (@14__lalit) // 'The team was very cooperative but the time (to retire) had come. Even before going to Europe for the Pro League, I was thinking about quitting. I will continue playing domestic hockey and leagues.' Lalit said he took up hockey to support his family as the small cloth shop was not doing well. 'My family condition was very bad when I took up hockey. My father's small cloth shop was closed and my mother had to stitch clothes. I took up the sport in search of a better future… a job. When my elder brother and I used to stay in day-boarding, we used to get Rs. 250-300 with which we bought a sewing machine for our mother,' he said. Asked about the best moment of his career, he recalls the quarterfinal against Great Britain at the Paris Olympics when India won in the shootout. He feels that despite a string of losses, India's performance in the Europe leg of the Pro League was not bad and the matches were close. 'Many new things were tried and we learnt a lot. We managed to defeat a top team like Belgium.' Lalit also expressed his desire to serve Indian hockey as a coach. 'If Hockey India wants, I am ready for it. I want to help the future generation of hockey players.' he said.
Hindustan Times
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Sable hopes to better his best at Worlds
Bengaluru: Laid low by a combination of poor form and injuries, India's premier 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable is confident to turn a corner at this year's World Championships in Tokyo (September 13-21). Avinash Sable will compete at the world championships in Tokyo in September. (Corbis via Getty Images) The 30-year-old met the Worlds qualifying mark of 8:15.00 at last year's Paris Olympics where his 8:14.18 helped him finish eleventh. In the five races since, Sable has failed to come close to the qualification cut-off with his season's best of 8:20.92 being significantly off his personal best (8:09.91) which he achieved in Paris a month before the qualification window for the Worlds opened. Currently training at Sports Authority of India's Bengaluru campus, the armyman said he had been carrying a niggle in his right hamstring and calf since the 2023 Asian Games where he secured gold with a time of 8:19.50. 'It used to hurt while running, which greatly affected my performance. I couldn't do well at the Olympics and the injury bothered me at the twin Diamond League meets this season,' Sable said, referring to his outings in Xiamen and Shanghai in April-May. While Xiamen was his season opener where he ran 8:22.59 to finish 13th among 16 finishers, Shanghai saw him clock 8:23.85 for an eighth-place result. 'I participated in two Diamond League events in China despite the injuries, and the results were not great. I thought of opting out of those competitions but didn't because I did not want to run away from the challenge,' he said. Sable then entered the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea 'to boost my confidence' and won the event with a time of 8:20.92. It's still way off the world standard or even his own personal best, but for Sable, it's all about a slow and steady build-up for the Worlds. Sable had a forgettable outing in his last appearance at the World Championships two years back when he crashed out of the heats with a time of 8:22.24. This time, he wants to get close to breaching the 8-minute barrier. 'It won't happen instantly. I am working on it and if everything is in place, I should be able to do it within a couple of seasons. At the Worlds, I want to better my best and get as close to breaking that 8-minute mark as possible,' he said. 'I want to improve my position from last time at Worlds. This year I have worked on finishing the race and maximising the mileage. But more than the position, I want to improve my timing from the last time.' Sable will next be in action at the Monaco Diamond League next month and is also planning to compete at a competition at home in the run-up to Worlds. His training is split between Ooty and Bengaluru and he is currently trained by SAI coach Kalyan Chaudhary. 'Kalyan sir has recently joined me. Before that, I was making my own training plans,' Sable, who moved out from Scott Simmons' stable earlier this year, said. 'Scott is a good coach but his training methods weren't conducive to my body, so I took that call.' 'The training with coach Nikolai (Snesarev) worked well for me, so I'm continuing with that. I haven't spoken to a long-term coach, and I'll continue like this for the season.' Sable also dabbled with the idea of shifting his training base to Africa this year, but decided against it. Plans are, however, afoot to get a 45-day training window in Morocco's Irfane, a small town in Middle Atlas Mountains.
The Hindu
15 hours ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Tejaswin headlines field at India Open athletics championship
Tejaswin Shankar is among the leading names who will compete in the Indian Open athletics meet 2025 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium here on Saturday. Tejaswin, who earned a decathlon silver at the Asian Athletics Championships last month, will feature in the 110m hurdles and high jump events here. Olympian Sarvesh Kushare will be among Shankar's challengers in the high jump. Asian Games silver medallist Mohammed Afsal, who broke the men's 800m national record last month, will also be seen in action. Abinaya Rajarajan, 18, who was part of the Indian women's 4x100m team which won silver at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025, will look to continue her impressive run in the senior ranks. Asian Athletics Championships bronze medallist Vithya Ramraj (women's 400m hurdles), sprinter Nithya Gandhe and Jisna Mathew (women's 400m) are some of the other international athletes on the start list.
