CHENNAI: It looks like the selection conundrum of the sailing team for the 49er FX category for the upcoming Asian Games is slowly nearing its end.
If top officials of the Yachting Association of India are to be believed, the Delhi High Court, on Wednesday, directed the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to name the two athletes who will represent India in said category.
This happened after YAI said that the final selection trials could not be arranged due to unavailability of venues. This was reported by the Express on Tuesday.
Decks appear clear for the initial team of Ekta Yadav and Shaila Charls to represent India at the mega event.
The IOA had already made it clear when the case was in court for the first time that they do not have the expertise to select the candidates and will go by the federation’s recommendation. However, Varsha’s father, Gautham Padmanabhan, on Wednesday, has claimed that the court has asked the IOA to not consider the federation’s choice. “As far as I know, the court has directed the IOA to not take the names recommended by the federation,” he told Express.
However, a top YAI official denied the claim. “The IOA themselves had made it clear that they do not have the expertise to take the decision. That is why we decided to conduct fresh selection trials in the first place. Otherwise, they could have selected two names when the issue first reached the court,” an official said on Wednesday.
The bigger problem here is if the IOA recommends Ekta Yadav and Shaila Charls’ name on Thursday and Varsha decides to go to court again, which looks highly likely, it will be another lengthy battle. There is also a possibility of India not being able to field any athletes in the 49er FX category. “We were sure of at least winning a silver medal with Ekta Yadav and Shaila Charls. But if the case is going on, then the loss is for the nation for missing out on a sure-shot medal,” the official added.
vimalsankar@newindianexpress.com