CHENNAI: After days of speculations, it has come to light that the final selection trials to determine the participants of the 49er fx category sailing event at the upcoming Asian Games in Jakarta may not take place. The reason? Unavailability of the venue.
If sources are to be believed, the lack of venue is just one of the impediments. Other reasons include lack of officials due to a paucity of time and resources. The Yachting Association of India had decided to hold the trials in Jakarta because the equipment and boats were already there and it was impossible to shift them back to India at such a short notice. The first two athletes selected by the YAI — Ekta Yadav and Shaila Charls are already in Jakarta for a preparatory camp since mid-July.
It is learnt that YAI officials flew down to Jakarta to check with the Indonesian Sailing Federation for a possible date to hold the trials that had been necessitated because of a Delhi High Court directive.
YAI claimed since the venue had already been taken over by the organising committee of the Asian Games, it was not possible to host the trials.
“There are a lot of formalities to be done before the Games and the venue is not fully ready. Overlays and other logistics are being taken care of. The slip-way is damaged and the sea conditions are also bad. Some repair works are going on. We have already sent three containers to Jakarta but the facility only has space for one container per country.” an official told Express.
Also, some of the other participating nations have expressed concerns that holding such a trial at the Games venue just days before the actual Games will give the participants an unfair advantage as they will get used to the conditions, an official said.
“The Indonesian government will also shut down all facilities due to security reasons before the start of the Asian Games. There is also a lack of manpower at the venue to hold trials. Most of them working with the federation are volunteers who will take off from their daily work just for the Games and it will be really difficult to ask them to come for an additional five days just for the trials. We even discussed an alternate venue and even that is not possible as it is a public beach.”
The YAI filed an application in the Delhi High Court on Tuesday listing out the reasons. “It’s not just the boats. We need to get the judges and officials to India for which there are many formalities and it is a long process,” the official added.
Sailor Varsha Gautham, who took to the Delhi High Court citing lack of transparency in the initial trials in Chennai with the HC directing the Yachting Association of India (YAI) to hold another trials to avoid all confusions, was not amused. Her father Gautham Padmanabhan was livid.
With the issue back in court, Varsha’s father Gautham Padmanabhan is planning to fight till the end and claimed that it was the federation’s idea to conduct fresh trials when the issue was first taken to court. “We will abide by the court whatever happens. Let the federation tell the court that they are incapable of holding the trials. We will see what to do then,” he said.
vimalshankar@newindianexpress.com