NRAI leaves it for late
Indian shooters left with little time to rest as national association messes up visa and accreditation process
The shooting contingent may be expected to win the biggest chunk ofmedals for the country in the 17th Asian Games in Incheon but the officials seem to be hardly bothered about ensuring that the shooters who are coming directly from the World Championship in Spain get ample rest before the start of the Games.
Nothing else could explain the bizarre situation the shooters have found themselves in. Almost all of them have to fly back to New Delhi and apply for a Korean visa before taking a flight to Incheon as the players’ accreditation cards are being given to them only in Korea.
This means that some of themedal contenders would be reaching Incheon 24 to 36 hours ahead of their competition with little rest after the World Championship.
In major Games like this, the accreditation cards also serve as visa and hence the athletes do not have to waste time on such formalities.
But the accreditation cards could not be kept ready along with other Indian athletes as theNational Rifle Association of India (NRAI) did not provide the players’ details like Passport number and photographs on time to the organisers.
No sleep
“We haven’t slept for more than 3-4 hours in the last few days,” said pistol shooter P N Prakash, who along with Om Prakash and a couple of others reached Incheon on Wednesday. “Because of this visa issue, we had to travel by road to Madrid from Granada, take a flight to India complete visa formalities and come here yesterday,” he said. While Om Prakash will be competing on Saturday, Prakash will be vying for the podium a day later.
Even Beijing Olympics gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, who wanted to come here two days ago to prepare for the Games in which a medal has evaded him so far, could not supress his frustration. “It would have been nice to come in early but what can I do?,” Bindra, 31, told a news agency.
“But you know what, I have got used to these things. Nothing surprises me anymore. The best I can do is concentrate on my event and give my best,” he added.
No help at village
What was worse for these athletes is that no NRAI official has reached Incheon and hence the players had to spend a couple of hours more to sort out their accreditation issues and reach the village. India’s chef de mission Adille Sumariwala admitted that there was a problem with the shooters as their details came late. “There accreditations were not ready along with the others as their personal details were sent late since most of them were busy in the Commonwealth Games and then the World Championship.
“The players were given their Accreditation Card numbers and we asked them to apply for visa, which is being issued within 24 hours,” he added.
What defies logic is why the NRAI or the IOA did not attempt to collect the accreditation cards once they were ready and then send them to the players in Spain?
Even the All India Football Federation had to send the cards to China due to late clearance to the team by the union government. “If the AIFF could do it, why not NRAI,” asked a players.
The shooting contingent may be expected to win the biggest chunk of
Nothing else could explain the bizarre situation the shooters have found themselves in. Almost all of them have to fly back to New Delhi and apply for a Korean visa before taking a flight to Incheon as the players’ accreditation cards are being given to them only in Korea.
This means that some of the
In major Games like this, the accreditation cards also serve as visa and hence the athletes do not have to waste time on such formalities.
But the accreditation cards could not be kept ready along with other Indian athletes as the
No sleep
“We haven’t slept for more than 3-4 hours in the last few days,” said pistol shooter P N Prakash, who along with Om Prakash and a couple of others reached Incheon on Wednesday. “Because of this visa issue, we had to travel by road to Madrid from Granada, take a flight to India complete visa formalities and come here yesterday,” he said. While Om Prakash will be competing on Saturday, Prakash will be vying for the podium a day later.
Even Beijing Olympics gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, who wanted to come here two days ago to prepare for the Games in which a medal has evaded him so far, could not supress his frustration. “It would have been nice to come in early but what can I do?,” Bindra, 31, told a news agency.
“But you know what, I have got used to these things. Nothing surprises me anymore. The best I can do is concentrate on my event and give my best,” he added.
No help at village
What was worse for these athletes is that no NRAI official has reached Incheon and hence the players had to spend a couple of hours more to sort out their accreditation issues and reach the village. India’s chef de mission Adille Sumariwala admitted that there was a problem with the shooters as their details came late. “There accreditations were not ready along with the others as their personal details were sent late since most of them were busy in the Commonwealth Games and then the World Championship.
“The players were given their Accreditation Card numbers and we asked them to apply for visa, which is being issued within 24 hours,” he added.
What defies logic is why the NRAI or the IOA did not attempt to collect the accreditation cards once they were ready and then send them to the players in Spain?
Even the All India Football Federation had to send the cards to China due to late clearance to the team by the union government. “If the AIFF could do it, why not NRAI,” asked a players.
