Uttarakhand: The officiating team of Taekwondo at the 38th National Games has undergone an overhaul amidst serious complaints of manipulation and match-fixing. The Games Technical Conduct Committee (GTCC) formed by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) took the step of removing the taekwondo competition director.
An inquiry was made for complaints that the officials in the Taekwondo competition had already fixed outcomes in 10 to 16 weight categories. The asking price for gold was ₹3 lakh, ₹2 lakh for silver medal and ₹1 lakh for bronze according to the allegations.
S Dinesh Kumar replaced Taekwondo’s director competition, T Praveen Kumar, after the findings of the inquiry, while 50 % of the nominated ‘Technical Officials’ were also replaced with qualified officials with international or national certification. The contests will have a video recording and a team of officials appointed by GTCC will witness the bouts during the four-day competition which will kick off on Tuesday.
"It is shocking and sad that National Games medals were allegedly decided even before the competition began. At the Indian Olympic Association, we are committed to being fair to all our athletes and protect them from people conniving to manipulate the competition and tarnish the image of the National Games,” IOA president PT Usha said in a release.
All the events of Taekwondo will be hosted by Milam Hall, Haldwani, from Tuesday for four days. There will be 26 events, out of which 16 will be Kyorugi competitions while 10 will be Poomsae competitions.
