India is still reliant on foreign trainers to train elite athletes in nearly every sport. Despite discussions about the need to create great Indian coaches, the situation on the ground remains dire. With India preparing to host the 2036 Olympics. The Sports Ministry has highlighted this need as one that must be filled. Raising world-class, homegrown coaches and support staff will be critical to improving India’s medal chances at the Olympics.
This topic was discussed during a meeting between Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and officials from National Sports Federations on Tuesday. To address the situation, the ministry intends to launch a scheme similar to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) for athletes. To develop a big pool of Indian coaches and support staff. Under the initiative, the government will finance Indian coaches to expand their knowledge.
They will receive intensive training abroad, and attend international coaching seminars and conferences. It has been observed that numerous Indian elite athletes still choose to practice with their original coaches. The federations have been advised to actively explore avenues to develop coaches and make the most of existing initiatives such as the Human Resource Development scheme, which provides financial help for training and short-term courses for coaches, and technical and support staff.
Sports Ministry Overlooking Athletes in Its Push
This initiative also provides aid in holding coaching camps and seminars within the country, inviting foreign specialists, and even sending them to overseas institutions. During the conference, some federation officials expressed worry about the significant salary disparity between Indian and foreign coaches. Anup Sridhar, a former international shuttler, has taken over as Singapore’s national team coach. International athletes who have recently retired and are working for various government departments will be encouraged to pursue coaching.
An official aware of the development said, that “Indian coaches are required at every level from grassroots to domestic to high-performance levels to raise talented athletes. That will not happen until there are enough quality Indian coaches who are trained in modern scientific coaching methods. International certification is also an important criterion for coaches.”
