Shillong, Sep 17: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma is optimistic that Meghalaya will be able to produce an Olympian by 2024 but the Congress is sceptical.
Moving a call attention on a media report “MSOA (Meghalaya State Olympic Association) plans to produce Olympians from the state by 2028” on the last day of the autumn session of Assembly, Congress MLA, HM Shangpliang asked the government to first implement the sports policy which was approved in June, 2019.
“The state government had come up with the sports policy for the sake of achieving a milestone, for it has been left untouched in the pages of the files. If this is the state of affairs, then the vision of producing an Olympian by 2024 or 2028 will remain just a dream,” Shangpliang said.
He said while the CM is hopeful that the state can produce an Olympian by 2024, MSOA working president, John F Kharshiing feels it will happen by 2028 or 2032.
According to Shangpliang, the State Sports Policy is aimed at inculcating a sporting culture through active participation in sports, leading to an energetic and healthy Meghalaya but, the Health department is yet to set up the sports medicine cell and the sports analysis centre, as highlighted in the policy.
The Health department had clarified that the creation of the centre would require the services of private professionals, he said.
“We would like to know if the inter-school or university-level competitions, recognised by the state government, have started,” Shangpliang queried.
He also said that a database of athletes’ performances is an important factor to monitor their progress. He said the Yo-Yo test has become a talking point ever since it became the benchmark for selection in the Indian cricket team.
“This test is considered to be one of the main reasons behind the massive improvement in the fitness level of players today,” the Congress MLA said.
He said India could win the seven medals at the Tokyo Olympics as the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs and the Sports Authority of India had allowed the hiring of qualified and tested foreign coaches as chief coaches.
Shangpliang observed that many parents in the state are not allowing their children to take up sports professionally due to lack of proper facilities, government support and job opportunities.
In his reply, the CM said the government felt concerted efforts need to be made with a goal to produce star athletes who can represent the country in the 2024 or the 2028 Olympics. “We have already initiated a number of measures to realise the dream of producing Olympians,” Sangma said.
He said globally, the approach adopted by the top sporting nations involves right policies, long-term investments and effective collaborations.
He observed that another critical step is the identification of right talents from the right age groups. For instance, he said, talents, aged 15-20 years, have to be identified and nurtured from now on for the 2024 Olympics. “We are putting in place a programme for talent identification and development in coordination with the MSOA,” he said.
The CM felt that athletes from the state will be able to represent the country in the Olympics if there is world class infrastructure, coupled with the identification of right talents, development mechanism and access to high quality coaching. “We are deeply committed to making this dream a reality. We will invest the resources and collaborate with various stakeholders including Government of India, MSOA, state sports associations and other external agencies,” Sangma added.
