The biggest challenge the national sports federations are facing is the plan of action for resuming the training camp. Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) had earlier decided to restart the Olympic camp after the lockdown ends but the future is uncertain with the number of coronavirus cases on the rise in recent weeks.
The Sports Authority of India had recently drafted a detailed ‘Standard Operation Procedure’ (SOP) for contact sports including wrestling.
As per the regulations, athletes will have to download the Aarogya Setu application. Also, the individual train will be the modus operandi for the training sessions. Apart from this, personal equipment cannot be shared with any other teammate, and athletes need to exit the training arena as soon as it concludes. However, the Health and Home Ministry are yet to give their final nod on the proposal.
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Amid all this, wrestlers have their fears of returning to the national camp. Twin Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar opines that without sparring there cannot be any wrestling. And since the possibility of catching the infection gets high if there is contact, there is no point of resuming the national camp anytime soon.
“It will take time for things to normalize in wrestling. Grappling is the most essential part of the sport. But if there is contact, the risk of catching infection also rises. And without sparring there is no wrestling. Therefore, what is the point of resuming training?” he said. “Camp should only be for the Olympic probable’s. All those who will be participating in the national camp should be quarantined. Moreover, if someone does not feel comfortable in returning to the camp and wishes to train personally, s/he should be allowed to do it,” he told Times of India.
Pooja Dhanda, India’s world medallist echoed Kumar’s thoughts and said “Coronavirus is still uncontrollable. Until it is controlled, organising the national camp will be a risky business.”
However, she also said that if the authority decides to resume the camp, it should be held in a green zone location.
Greco-Roman wrestler Harpreet has put his faith on WFI’s decision and told Wrestling TV “time is our ally and therefore we should not rush into the camp. Rest, whatever WFI decides, it will be in our favour”.
India confirmed quota in four weight classes – 57kg, 65kg, and 86kg in Men’s freestyle and 53kg in women’s.
Ravi Dahiya who confirmed India’s 57kg Tokyo berth said “we should wait until May end before resuming training. This way we can have our time to monitor the situation.”
His best friend and teammate Deepak Punia share Dahiya’s thoughts. “Restarting the camp now can be fatal. Even a slightest of mistakes can put everyone in danger. I think, if the camp has to resume then it should be done with a small group. And everyone should be quarantined before training begins”.
WFI had released a list of 39 wrestlers who will be attending the camp. Only those who will be competing in the Olympic weights have been included for the first phase. White Men’s freestyle and Women’s Wrestling will have 15 wrestlers each – three wrestlers in five weight classes – Greco-Roman will have nine grapplers. The men’s camp will be held at Sonepat. However, given the situation in Lucknow, the women’s SAI camp can be relocated.
