NEW DELHI: A department related standing committee on education, women, children, youth and sports has said sportspersons, athletes and coaches who will be part of the Indian contingent in the 2021
Olympics should be inoculated for the coronavirus on priority basis.
‘Preparation for Olympic Games, 2021’, a report prepared by the Vinay Shahasrabudhe-led department-related standing committee was submitted to
Rajya Sabha chairman
M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday.
Among key findings, the panel asked the government to fill up, urgently, large number of vacancies of foreign coaches to train Indian athletes.
“About 561 vacancies exist of Coaches. This is unacceptable. These should be filled up within specific time-bound manner so that Olympic preparations don’t suffer,” the panel noted in its report, observing that many coaches had resigned and returned to their countries in the wake of the pandemic.
The panel also recommended a survey in
collaboration with National Sports Federations to gauge the requirements for coaches, including personal coaches for athletes and said a dedicated digital portal should be set up for all athletes to list their requirements for equipment, training, and nutrition.
The House panel also said government must identify training facilities, stadia, and sports centres and reopen them for athletes to train in. It stressed that the Sports ministry and NSF must provide ample opportunity for players to play international tournaments before the 2021 Olympic Games.
The house panel recommended the setting up of Bio-Bubbles in training facilities for a secure training environment to Indian sportspersons and said athletes who are potential medal winners should be given individualised programmes and sent abroad as soon as possible in a bubble environment where top scientific infrastructure is available.
The panel also recommended instituting ‘sport injury insurance schemes’ for sportspersons through a collaborative framework by the central and state governments, tailoring scheme to individual needs of each sports discipline. Apart from prioritising vaccination for participating athletes, the committee added that they should have access to a full-time “functional” National Anti-Doping Authority (NADA) helpline for advice.