The pugilists were due to start training later this month or early in August after the Boxing Federation of India got the SAI nod to conduct the national camp amid the pandemic.
Rani Rampal led the team to historic victories in the Women's Asia Cup in 2017, silver at the 2018 Asian Games and played a critical role in the FIH Olympic Qualifiers in 2019 by scoring the deciding goal that helped India qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.
Tokyo-bound AFI medical commission chairman AK Mendiratta dies of COVID-19.
In an unusual move, ace weightlifter Mirabai Chanu has been nominated for the Arjuna award by the national federation though the former World champion is already a recipient of Khel Ratna, country's highest sporting honour. The Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) has nominated Chanu along with Ragala Venkat Rahul and Punam Yadav.
IOA wants flexibility with calendars
India's tennis players -- both current and former -- are not just counting financial losses as they cope with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The closure of the Pro Tour means that doubles exponent Purav Raja is set to lose at least $50,000 in this lockdown period, according to his own assessment. Prajnesh Gunneswaran, Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Divij Sharan can't exactly tell how much they would lose but considering the fact that they are consistently in contention to be in Grand Slam main draws, the massive financial hit is not difficult to assess.
India has been battling a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic that has forced many countries to ban travellers from India.
India pulled out of the Women's World Team Squash Championship scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from December 15 to 20 due to "lack of preparation time" and "uncertainties" about travelling amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Boxers reached Amman from Assisi on February 27 and were found all clear after undergoing the mandatory screening for symptoms. Jordan has so far recorded only one positive case.
Chess grandmasters resume COVID-delayed tournament in Russia
IOA president Narinder Batra had alleged that Sports Authority of India's TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) CEO Rajesh Rajagopalan was interfering in the functioning of federations. Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju, however, said the government has no such intention.
The AFI had on Saturday requested the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to consider Chitra's case after Sports Minister Vijay Goel asked the national federation to honour the Kerala High Court directive.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
Reaction to Canada's boycott of the 2020 Tokyo Games in the summer due to concerns about the coronavirus.
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju said a number of moves had been initiated by the government to enable India make a breakthrough in realising its potential in sports. He was speaking at the inaugural session of the six-day online technical officials' seminar jointly conducted by the South Asian Athletics Federation and the Athletics Federation of India.
Vinesh Phogat, the only Indian woman wrestler to have qualified for Tokyo Olympics, has pulled out of the national camp citing health safety concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a decision which has irked the national federation.
The Sports Ministry has earmarked Rs 100 crore for the funding of athletes under the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) for their preparations for 2020 Olympics.
In a letter to the Minister, Amit Panghal, who became India's first male boxer to win a world championship silver last year, said that athletes should not have to plead their case for an award by nominating themselves.
India's former Davis Cup captain Mahesh Bhupathi on Thursday said he cannot get over the "hurt" caused by the national federation's manner of sacking him but it is hardly a surprise given how the body has dealt with players in the last two decades.
The AITA selection committee, on Tuesday, decided to keep veteran Leander Paes in the five-member playing squad for the upcoming Davis Cup tie against Croatia, making Divij Sharan the reserve member.
"The Hockey India League made a big difference. It played an important role in the re-development of hockey in India," he said.
Next month's Federation Cup National Senior Championships (April 10-13), a qualifying event for the Tokyo Olympics, has been postponed to a later date.
Nagal, who has played his best tennis this season, sent a confirmation to the All India Tennis Association (AITA) on Thursday night while Ramkumar had conveyed his availability a few days ago.
Indian athletes led the way in providing the Indian Olympic Association their feedback on how to restart national camps amid the coronavirus pandemic but a lot of national federations missed the deadline for submission of response, leaving IOA president Narinder Batra disappointed. On May 5, the IOA, while conceding that the risk of athletes losing motivation in the ongoing lockdown is real, sought their views along with those of coaches and other stakeholders on how to restart outdoor training.
The All India Tennis Association (AITA), along with 10 other national federations (NSFs), was invited by sports secretary Radhey Shyam Julaniya for a video conference. AITA secretary general Hironmoy Chatterjee said they were 'extremely disappointed' by the attitude of Julaniya, who 'only talks and does not want to listen'.
Russia has been suspended from international athletics since November 2015 after the McLaren report discovered widespread doping.
'It is an extraordinary situation no doubt but we are all hoping for this to be brought under control by June', says BFI confident of COVID-19 storm passing.
Verma wins compound individual gold, opens tally for India.
India lost the hosting rights of the 2021 men's World Boxing Championship to Serbia after the national federation failed to pay the host fee, prompting the International Boxing Association (AIBA) to terminate the agreement signed in 2017. The elite competition, which would have happened for the first time in the country, will now be held in the Serbian city of Belgrade.
China's wrestlers will not be taking part in the Asian Championships beginning in New Delhi on Tuesday as they have not been granted visas by the government due to the novel coronavirus outbreak there, a top official of the national federation said on Monday. Wrestling Federation of India assistant secretary Vinod Tomar said that the government has denied visas to the 40-strong Chinese contingent.
The old format was skewed in favour of the bigger clubs, who could rest players for a first leg and swallow defeat before calling on their stars to turn the tie around in the return game.
Suspension, internal mudslinging and factionalism overshadowed some stellar performances by Indian archers as the sport went from bad to worse with just a few months left for Tokyo Olympics in an eventful 2019. The biggest blow to Indian archery came in August when World Archery suspended the national federation after two warring groups conducted parallel elections in Delhi and Chandigarh in a clear defiance of the international body's guidelines.
16-year-old Gaurvi Singhvi, who hails from Udaipur, crossed the English Channel in 13 hours and 26 minutes.
Indian boxers training in Italy for next month's Olympic qualifiers were given the option of flying out early due to the novel Coronavirus threat in that country but the team has decided to stay put as its training base in Assisi is "far" from the epicentre of the outbreak.
In its 19-page Standard Operating Procedure for resumption of training as well as competitions, the Boxing Federation of India has mandated health protocols similar to what the Sports Authority of India has suggested.
Real Madrid did well to hold Atletico in regulation time and then win the match 4-1 in penalty shootouts.
Mary Kom (51kg) claimed her eighth world medal at the recently-concluded championships in Russia. She was selected for the event ahead of Zareen, who was refused a trial by the Boxing Federation of India (BFI), which decided to go by Mary Kom's consistent performances while making the choice.
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday said the government will not have any say on whether India should participate in next month's Davis Cup tie in Pakistan as the event is not a bilateral engagement.
"Fact that persons with disabilities get marginalised from every scheme does not require a debate," the court said.
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