National badminton coach Pullela Gopichand feels Indian athletes no longer have to worry about the basic facilities that he had to struggle for in his playing days.
The money-spinning Indian Premier League has mulled a closed-door edition in a desperate bid to avoid cancellation as the deadly COVID-19 sent Indian sports into quarantine after a government directive for fans to be kept away from all action to prevent the pandemic from spreading.
President Ram Nath Kovind presented Padma awards to 73 individuals, some posthumously, at a ceremony held in the Rashtrapati Bhavan here on Monday.
The deadly COVID-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented postponement as the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Japanese government and the athletes world over agreed that Olympics in July-August this year could not have gone ahead in the present circumstances.
The administrators are busy thrashing out resumption plans but with the COVID-19 pandemic showing no signs of slowing down, India's sportsperson are pleading for caution as discussion rages on whether competitions can resume by August. Top stars from various disciplines want the waiting period to continue, while others pointed out at the loss it would cause in terms of fitness and readiness.
Kidambi Srikanth is against any drastic changes in the scoring system being contemplated by the world body.
Rediff.com encapsulates all the sporting action from the past week in this eye-catching photo feature.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Sports Ministry has formulated a multi-pronged strategy which includes a portal for promising sportspersons, top level committee to select promising players and a task force to prepare a comprehensive action plan.
The Indian Badminton League has named Under-19 players for five of its franchises, in addition to those picked at the auction. According to IBL rules, each franchise had to pick an India Under-19 player, who will be the 11th player in the respective squads.
Aiming to improve its standing as a sporting nation globally, India is trying to adopt the models followed by Australia and United Kingdom.
India has been battling a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic that has forced many countries to ban travellers from India.
His repeated requests for rehabilitation ignored, Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Parupalli Kashyap is flummoxed after being sent air tickets to join the Indian badminton squad at the South Asian Games despite being laid low by an abdominal strain.
M C Mary Kom, who is also a sitting Rajya Sabha MP, said the alarming increase in the number of rapes in the country has left her feeling "hurt and helpless" while star shuttler Saina Nehwal condemned the 'ghastly crimes'.
The Sports Ministry is set to establish 1000 Khelo India Centres (KIC) at the district level across the country with the help of sporting champions, who will be remunerated for providing their expertise. The centres will either be run by a past champion or have them as a coach.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
Athletes capable of adapting to uncertainty amid the coronavirus outbreak will be best placed to succeed at the Tokyo Olympics, India's sole individual Olympic champion Abhinav Bindra said. Known for his Zen-like poise and attention to minute details in preparation, Bindra, who won shooting gold at the 2008 Games in Beijing, said adaptability is key for athletes training to excel in Tokyo amid concerns about the virus.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
'Although a Commonwealth Shooting Championships is amongst one of several ideas being discussed with the ISSF, nothing has been formally proposed, let alone agreed upon'
'These reports of cases being very low in other states, is it true? Are the numbers believable?'
The 28-year-old's comment came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with 2018 Commonwealth Games medallists in the national capital on Monday.
Tennis star Leander Paes and badminton player-turned-coach Pullela Gopichand were selected for the prestigious Padma Bhushan awards while cricketer Yuvraj Singh was among the seven sportspersons chosen for this year's Padma Shri award.
Shanghai sports authorities have recommended the suspension of all sporting events in the city due to the coronavirus outbreak, casting further doubt on whether the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix will take place. This year's calendar has a record 22 races, leaving little chance of any rescheduling. Russia, whose race is in September but has previously been held in April, has already ruled out a date swap.
The former All-England badminton champion says he was in the dark about the formation of new Arjuna Awards panel.
COVID-19 is a stark reminder that man should now learn to respect nature and not tinker with it, says Indian shuttler Sameer Verma. The shuttler also felt that the coronavirus-forced break is an opportunity to fix mental weakness and that a six-week training regime should be good enough to regain match-fitness after normalcy returns.
Indian ace Saina Nehwal's ascent to the top of women's badminton was officially confirmed.
Star shuttler Jwala Gutta once again asked the Badminton Association of India to stop the "step-motherly treatment" towards its doubles players, saying its high time the federation changes its attitude. "I've won medals at the highest level but you're still not capitalising on the achievement. The doubles are still being given a step-motherly treatment. You need to change your attitude," a concerned Jwala told PTI in an interview on the sidelines of the 12th South Asian Games here. "After Ashwini and I, there is nobody and that is the plain truth. It's the doubles, I'm more worried about," a three-time medalist in the Commonwealth Games 2006, 2010 and 2014 lamented. "If we want to compete with China, we have to encourage all the events. We can't just bank on singles all the time. Doubles is taken seriously everywhere except India," the ace shuttler said.
In the video, Bachchan explains GST as an unifying force just like the three colours in the national flag.
From international sporting legends to national sporting icons, everyone took time out to wish fans and well-wishers for Diwali.
The Badminton Association of India (BAI) has amended its constitution to align itself in accordance with the Government's Sports Code by fixing the age and tenure limitation of its office bearers.
The Sports Ministry identified 45 potential medal winners, who will get financial assistance under the government scheme 'Target Olympic Podium' for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Anyone who wants to attend the wedding of Malaysian badminton player Lee Chong Wei could be one of 10 lucky fans winning invitations by posting on his Facebook page.
Badminton world number one Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia has been provisionally suspended for an "apparent" anti-doping violation, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) said on Tuesday.
The athletes were unable to enter Australia due to government restrictions on foreign nationals travelling from China.
Caught in the dope net, Asian Games bronze-medallist javelin thrower Davinder Singh Kang on Sunday said the failed result is because of a declared medication he took for sore throat and he is confident of being cleared in the disciplinary hearing.
'Delhi voters have liked the politics of performance over noisy rhetoric and empty promises,' points out Vijaya Pushkarna.
At a colourful ceremony, which included a presentation of India's indigenous martial art forms, dances and sports, Modi said technology has contributed to a sedentary lifestyle.
The Badminton Association of India's disciplinary committee has recommended a life ban on top Indian doubles shuttler Jwala Gutta for trying to stop some players of her franchise Krrish Delhi Smashers from playing a match against Banga Beats in the Indian Badminton League.
The SAI has formulated a detailed draft of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to be followed before reopening of its training centres by the end of this month, as suggested by Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju but subject to clearance from the Health and Home ministry.
Few of these highly sought-after socialising and networking hubs are seeing much activity as regulars are missing in action.
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