CHENNAI: Hours after Baek Woong Ki expressed his shock after denial of accreditation to be with the squad in the Paris Olympics, the Archery Association of India (AAI) has cited limited availability as a reason for not including India's South Korean Archery coach in the contingent. "Because we (AAI) have a foreign coach, we thought he should be staying with the team," Gunjan Abrol, Assistant Secretary of AAI told The New Indian Express.
"That is why we sent a letter to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to accommodate five (including three coaches and two support staff). They do have restrictions with regard to the maximum number of officials on the team. That is why they have given two full-fledged accreditations and two day passes. The physiotherapist and psychologist are included, however, they will stay outside the Olympic Village," he added.
"We would have been able to get a maximum of three day passes for support staff to stay outside of the Olympics village, (those with passes) are not allowed to enter the Field of Play. If we had got the day pass for the foreign coach, he would not have been able to enter the field. In that case, it would have been of no use to send the foreign coach to be with the team," Arbol mentioned.
Currently, Purnima Mahato and Sonam Tshering Bhutia are the two coaches who have travelled with the team to Paris. "Our women’s team, including Deepika Kumari, is attached with Purnima Mahato as she is the coach at the Tara Archery Academy. And they are more comfortable with Purnima. With regard to the men’s team, all three members are from Army. Sonam Tshering Bhutia is there as a coach with them. Sometimes they need direction during the event and language could be the barricade at that time, so (he is there with the team,)" he explained.
Meanwhile the IOA has maintained that the organisation has acted on the recommendations from the respective National Sports Federations. "IOA has gone by the recommendation and advice of all National Sports Federations whose athletes are competing in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. IOA has acted positively on accreditation recommendations and requests of all NSFs and even individual athletes. IOA will act on any request that comes from the Archery Association of India," an IOA official told this daily.
India's contingent for the Olympics includes 117 athletes and 140 support staff members. The archery squad includes six archers, two coaches along with two members of support staff, hoping to win India's first medal in the event starting from July 25.