After 6 in London, India doubles its Rio Olympics medals projection

Following his steady rise, SAI has pinned hopes on Vikas Gowda.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the sports ministry are looking at ‘around 10 to 14 medals’ for India at the Rio Olympics, nearly double than what the country managed at the London Games four years ago.

The projection was made at a meeting held in the capital on Tuesday where top officials from the sports ministry, SAI, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and national federations reviewed performances and preparations of athletes from each discipline.

SAI director general Injetti Srinivas said they were initially looking at just seven disciplines for medals, but with the country’s race walkers, discus thrower Vikas Gowda and 3,000m steeplechase specialist Lalita Babar showing steady improvement in their performances, the government believes they are ‘capable of throwing a surprise.’

The officials also added golf to the list of sports that can land a medal, while expressing concerns at the preparedness of the boxers, saying that the ad-hoc committee looking after the sport needs to show ‘supreme urgency’ to ensure maximum number of pugilists qualify for the Games.

“We are sticking to our projection of around 10 to 14 medals going by current form of our athletes. What happens on that particular day is something none of us can predict, but we should achieve this target,” Srinivas said after the meeting.

“We were earlier focusing on just seven disciplines but looking at our recent performances in athletics and golf, we believe there is hope there too. The status of boxing, however, is something that concerns us.”

The projections, he said, were made looking at the performances of the athletes in the last 12 months. Srinivas said they will also bring more flexibility in the budget for a genuine medal prospect in the run up to the Olympics.

India is also expecting medals from disciplines such as shooting, badminton, boxing, tennis, wrestling and archery. Golf will be making its Olympic debut in Rio and the SAI is pinning its hopes on Anirban Lahiri, who has been in sizzling form on the PGA tour in the last few months.

“There is no reason to doubt capability of getting a medal. Especially in discus throw, if things go well, Vikas will be in the medal zone. The potential of race walkers has become imminent as well. So there is no reason why we shouldn’t expect them to be among medals. This is one new sport we have looked at in terms of medals,” Srinivas said, adding they are expecting the 4x400m women’s relay team to be among the top six at the Games.

Boxing a concern

Despite the optimism surrounding other disciplines, the state of boxers remains one of their key concerns. The boxers are pinning their hopes on the Asian qualifiers beginning March 23 to win Olympic berths but the absence of a federation is clearly hurting their chances, according to Srinivas.

Indian boxing has been without a parent body since May last year after a revolt by state units, who passed a no confidence motion against Boxing India president Sandeep Jajodia and secretary general Jay Kowli. The international boxing association subsequently suspended Boxing India, and formed an ad-hoc committee, which includes Srinivas, to govern the sport.

However, the absence of a federation has impacted boxers’ participation in international tournaments and limited their exposure trips as well.

“We share the concern that it is not a cakewalk (to qualify for the Olympics) and that the window of opportunity is closing. So we have to address the issue with supreme urgency and must ensure maximum representation in Rio.

The ad-hoc body should immediately take stock in terms of preparations and find out how there can be greater focus and (performances) be bettered,” Srinivas said. “In the absence of a federation, there is naturally some vacuum but it should not be a reason for any deficiency. That responsibility is with us and the ad-hoc committee.”

Women’s hockey coach

The SAI also approved the appointment of Australian David Bell as women’s team coach. He will replace Canadian Mathias Arhens and will be working alongside compatriot Neil Hawgood. The women’s team has qualified for the Olympics for the first time after three decades. Arhens, who was appointed last year, resigned citing personal reasons.

Former Australia captain Bell was part of the Montreal Olympics squad that won a silver medal. He has also coached the Australian women’s team from 2001 to 2004.

However, there will be no addition to the coaching staff in boxing and shooting. The chief foreign coaches in both disciplines — BI Fernandes and Stanislas Lapidus (rifle) respectively — quit under controversial circumstances. With the Olympics just a few months away, there is little time to find a suitable replacement.

Srinivas said these issues should not impact the performance of the athletes and insisted they are looking at a double digit figure at the Olympics.

“Because our performance is not predominant in measurable events such as athletics, it is difficult to predict the number of medals we will win. But, going by form, we are expecting a double digit figure performance. Anything below that will be disappointing,” Srinivas said.