Indian athletes training abroad brace for coronavirus threat

Karam Prakash

Tribune News Service

Patiala, March 4

Several Indian athletes who are training abroad to prepare for the July-August Tokyo Olympics are bracing for the threat of the coronavirus and have been taking precautions.

The Indian javelin throw team, currently in Turkey, has been on a training stint since last month. In the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics, athletes had travelled to South Africa before they landed in Turkey.

The athletics team is supposed to travel to some more countries in Europe for buildup competitions before the Tokyo Games. Last night, the Indian wrestling team also left for Azerbaijan for a training stint, despite the threat of coronavirus.

As the virus has already turned pandemic, experts say the Indian athletes should be extra careful before embarking on a training stint abroad. Not only the destination, the countries the athletes have to travel through in transit also need to be carefully chosen.

Extra care

Athletes who are undergoing training at the National Institute of Sport here have already started taking precautions. Talking with The Tribune, athletes said that they have become extra cautious and are avoiding going to shopping malls and public places.

An athlete currently in Turkey said: “We are taking extra care. Physical contact with other international athletes has been reduced. We are restricting ourselves to just ground and living places. Special care of hygiene is also being kept.”

The wrestling team also needs to take care because in the pipeline are plans to tour many nations in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics. Notably, the Asian Olympic Qualifier, slated for March 27-19 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, has already been cancelled due to the fears over the coronavirus.

SAI tells federations to be cautious about training abroad

New Delhi: The Sports Authority of India (SAI) has told the National Sports Federations (NSFs) that due to the coronavirus outbreak, they need to be cautious in planning training and competition tours in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics. R Rajagopalan, CEO of Target Olympic Podium Scheme, wrote to the NSFs: “In view of the recent epidemic of novel coronavirus 2019 across the world, the Government would like to advise all the National Sports Federations to exercise caution while planning foreign competitions and training for the teams, especially in view of the forthcoming Olympics at Tokyo 2020. We also understand that the IOA has issued an advisory based on IOC’s position on the same.” He added that while the government understands the criticality of ranking tournaments and Olympic qualifiers for athletes who are trying to qualify for Tokyo 2020, “the health of our athletes takes precedence”. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) too had issued an advisory on the issue, apprising the NSFs about the Tokyo 2020 test events and the precautionary measures being taken by the organisers. TNS

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