CHENNAI: The Rowing Federation of India (RFI) has called off its Olympic camp, which was going on at the Army Rowing Node in Pune, due to the growing number of COVID-19 cases in India. National coach Ismail Baig, Bajrang Lal Takhar and some army coaches were training a group of 10 rowers since mid-February in the city. “The camp was called off on Wednesday and all the rowers and coaches have gone home, including me,” Baig said.
RFI president Rajlaxmi Singh Deo said that all operations have been shut indefinitely. Apart from men, a group of 35 women rowers, including the 16 who were training for Asian Championships scheduled to held from November 16-21 at the Upper Lake, Bhopal have also been asked to leave. “All the girls have been sent home. We are not sure when the camps will resume. We will take a call depending on the situation. I hope all athletes follow the instructions of the government and take care of their health,” Deo said.
COVID-19 LIVE | Shaheen Bagh protest site cleared, India tally hits 475
ISA shut down
The Squash Rackets Federation of India (SRFI) has also cancelled all domestic tournaments until April 31. According to SRFI secretary-general Cyrus Poncha, the earliest they are planning to start the domestic schedule is by mid-May, provided the situation gets better. “The Indian Squash Academy (ISA) has been shut and all the coaches have gone home. We did it when the first government advisory came out. Some of the top stars like Saurav Ghosal, Joshna Chinappa, Ramit Tandon and Vikram Malhotra are here in India as the Professional Squash Association (PSA) has also cancelled all tournaments until April end,” Poncha said.
AFI postpones Fed Cup
After the Indian GP, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has postponed the Federation Cup National Championships that was scheduled to be held in Patiala from April 10 to 13. The new dates have not been announced yet.