There was no miracle in the end. P.U. Chithra will not fly to London, after all. “We did what we could, and had written to the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF), but our request was rejected,” an Athletics Federation of India (AFI) official told The Hindu on Sunday.
The world body’s decision should hardly come as a surprise for those who follow international sports. These federations have their own rules and they normally do not allow the entry of a participant past the deadline.
So it was always going to be a race against heavy odds for Chithra, the 21-year-old who had won the 1,500 m gold at the Asian Athletics Championship in Bhubaneswar earlier this month, once she was omitted from the Indian team for London. The AFI’s decision was surprising because as a continental champion, it could easily have included her in the squad.
The AFI had reasoned that her timing was not near the qualifying mark for the London meet. The AFI had the right to omit her, but her inclusion would not have weakened the Indian team considerably.
If nothing else, the world championship would have given her international exposure. For someone who has raced her way to glory from an underprivileged background (she comes from a village in Palakkad and both her parents are daily wage labourers), an opportunity like this does not come very often.
That was why an entire State stood behind her. The Chief Minister, the Sports Minister and the MP spoke for her. Even the Union Sports Minister stepped in.
But, it was all too late.