Hyderabad: Ashwini Nachappa, the Indian FloJo - named after American sprinting great Florence-Griffith Joyner, slammed the Tokyo Olympics Organising Committee for imposing additional restrictions on Indian athletes just a month ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. But the 53-year-old former Asian Games silver medallist asked the Indian officials to create an exclusive space in Tokyo to avoid disruption of their physical training before the Olympics.
The sprinting queen of the 1980s has, however, heaped praise on the Indian government for taking a "serious" effort to promote Olympic sports in the country.
On this Olympic Day, Ashwini Nachappa, who shot into fame when she defeated legendary PT Usha at two back to back 200m race in 1991 in New Delhi, talked about her favourites for India's maiden athletics medal in Tokyo 2020 and recent activities at her academy in Coorg, Karnataka in an exclusive interview with Etv Bharat Sports Journalist Sudipta Biswas.
Excerpts...
Q: You have been compared to athletics great Florence Griffith Joyner for your flamboyant personality. How does it feel to be compared with the legend?
Ashwini Nachappa: For any athlete, getting compared to the best on her field for her performance and stylish personality always gives a superb feeling.
Q: What is your plan for this Olympic Day?
Ashwini: Unfortunately, due to the pandemic our foundation, Ashwini's Sports Foundation and the school, Karaumbiah's Academy for Learning & Sports, are yet to open up for athletes and students. This year, all programmes related to the Olympic Games and its spirit will be held virtually, from debates to essay writing, quiz to a special project to an inspirational talk by Olympian Shiva Keshavan. In normal times, on the Olympic Day, we commemorate it with a road race open to the public and interaction with Olympians.
Q: You have been running an academy at Coorg since 2010. How tough it has been to run sports activities amid the pandemic?
Ashwini: At the academy, our core sports are athletics, hockey and shooting. We have adapted to the situation and prepared well to handle the pandemic. It has been a learning curve for all of us as every negative impact has its advantages as well. In fact, from November to April first week we had conducted sports activities and physical training for all ours teams. While precaution and care are necessary, life cannot function with FEAR! So, we have stopped all the activities as the second wave hit us.
Q: How many athletes are training at your academy at present?
Ashwini: A total of 32 aspiring athletes train at the academy.
Q: Is there any financial and technical assistance coming in your way from the government or corporate sector?
Ashwini: Not so far.
Q: Of late the central government seems taking sports very seriously and working towards promoting Olympic sports in the country. Sports minister Kiren Rijiju this time made an exception excluding the government's representative from the Indian contingent. How do you look at this move?
Ashwini: It is certainly a firm action, but the government must make it a norm for future Olympics as well. I hope they are not doing it just because of the pandemic.
A huge amount of money had gone to waste as freebees for so long to please people who had nothing to do with sports. A more conscious effort needed; priority should be given to accountability and result oriented delivery.
Q: Do you think the government has a holistic approach to promoting Olympic sports in India? Would you like to suggest something to the government as you earlier did, writing an open letter to the previous sports minister?
Ashwini: Earlier, the impetus of sports was not robust. Now, this government is trying to make it at all levels. The government has taken so many initiatives to smooth the process of athletes' training amid the pandemic. It speaks volumes of its work in promoting Olympic disciplines in India.
If they require my service, I will always be available. My suggestions are already there on how we can make things very transparent and professional.
Q: Only the 4x400m mixed relay team has qualified for the Olympics. Both the 4x100m and 4x400m women's relay teams missed the chances due to pandemic related restrictions. Apart from that, athletes like Hima Das and Swapna Barman could not qualify mainly due to the injuries. What is your opinion about these missed opportunities?
Ashwini: There cannot be ifs and buts in life. The reality is you missed the opportunity. Now, they must think about how they can better their performance for the next Olympics.
Q: How optimistic are you about India's chances of winning the maiden athletics medal in the Olympics in Tokyo 2020?
Ashwini: With the kind of performances our athletes have put up in the last few months, there may be an outside chance for Neeraj (Neeraj Chopra) in Javelin throw and Murali Sreeshankar in the Long jump.
In other disciplines like badminton, shooting, weightlifting and wrestling, we have a great chance of winning medals.
Q: The local organising committee of the Tokyo Olympics has imposed additional restrictions on Indian athletes due to the emergence of the delta variant from India. Do you think this move of the Tokyo Organising Committee could hurt Indian athletes' chances?
Ashwini: I don't understand the reason for this different rule for our athletes. If our athletes and officials arrive in Tokyo with negative test results and vaccination certificates, which is mandatory, the organising committee should have no problem. Isolation without training is not acceptable. If the situation doesn't change, the Indian officials have to ensure an exclusive space for basic fitness training for our athletes in Tokyo.
Q: What is your message to India's Olympic medal hopefuls?
Ashwini: Keep up the spirit, respect the values of the Games. The focus should be on giving better performance than the one you qualified with. Rest will follow as you will then enjoy your game to the fullest. Don't forget the health protocols and keep checking your teammates.
