New Delhi: The All India Tennis Association will have a sprinkling of tennis legends and stars in its executive committee as Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit (SOMs). On Thursday, two stalwarts of the game -- Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi -- managed to secure seats in the EC Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit (SOM) representatives. During the election, Bhupathi polled 23 votes, the highest among the candidates in the Executive Committee election, while Mirza secured 18 votes. Janaki Krishnamoorthy received 13 votes and Vishal Uppal polled seven.
This is also an indication that AITA might have former players in the system in the next elected body. Bhupathi and Mirza were elected to the General Body as SOM representatives after polling 19 and 18 votes respectively. Ashutosh Singh, with 17 votes, and Shalini Thakur Chawla, with 16, were the other two elected representatives.
The other candidates in the General Body election were Janaki Krishnamoorthy (15), Vishal Uppal (9), Gaurav Natekar (8) and Ankita Bhambri (7). With Bhupathi and Mirza now members of the Executive Committee, they will not contest for an office-bearer's post in the AITA elections.
"I think it was very heartening to see 31 SOM show up to vote, even though none of them have ever got any support from AITA in the past. So it shows that they wanted to come from different parts of India. Some flew from Hong Kong to show their support for what we believe in, and we believe that we can put a structure together to make change. And the fact that Sania and I are in the EC now I believe we can put a structure together sooner than later," Bhupathi said on Thursday.
Expressing her gratitude after being elected to the General Body, Shalini said: "I look forward to contributing positively towards the growth of Indian tennis, representing the interests of our sporting community and working together for a stronger future." Ashutosh Singh, the current Davis Cup coach, also thanked the tennis fraternity for its support. "This is both an honour and a responsibility. I look forward to working collectively with all elected members to strengthen Indian tennis and create better opportunities for our players and coaches," he said. As per the amended AITA constitution, four SOM representatives, comprising two men and two women, are elected to the General Body.
The 40-member SOM roster, drawn up under the National Sports Governance Act, comprises 20 male and 20 female former players. The SOM representation is part of the broader sports governance reforms aimed at giving accomplished sportspersons a greater role in the administration of national sports federations. (Inputs from PTI)