To eradicate the menace of doping and age-fraud must take priority to set the Indian sports ecosystem right, panelists in a session of The Hindu Huddle emphasised.

Former international track star Ashwini Nachappa explained that a holistic approach must be taken to tackle doping offences. “Just punishing athletes who are caught doping is not enough. The federations need to play a bigger role,” Ms. Ashwini said in a session titled ‘India 2036: The making of a sporting nation’ hosted by K.C. Vijaya Kumar, Sports Editor, The Hindu.

Also read: Click here to read our live updates from Day 2 of The Hindu Huddle

Ms. Ashwini spoke about the challenges involved in running a sports facility. “When I call athletes to train in my KALS academy in Kodagu, they refuse because they want to live in the comfort of big cities. This culture must change,” Ms. Ashwini said.

K. Kunal, Joint Secretary, Sports Development, Ministry of Sports (Govt. of India), stated that strict measures will be enforced to punish all parties involved in doping. “We want to criminalise doping. This applies to the entire doping system - those who provide the substances to athletes, the middlemen and all others,” Mr. Kunal said.

Anjali Bhagwat, a pioneer of rifle shooting, spoke eloquently on competing at a time when her sport was considered niche. “In my era, only people who knew about shooting appreciated my performances. Now with social media, every small shooting competition reaches the entire country. Social media is great, but we have to restrict the use of mobile phones when it comes to our top athletes. The top athletes must focus purely on their craft,” Ms. Anjali said.

With India making a strong bid to host the 2036 Olympics, Ms. Anjali underlined the need to first focus on grassroot development. “Is there a future in shooting? Yes. Is there money to be made if you become a shooter? Yes, but only if you are a top-level shooter. We have to start our work from the grassroot level before we think of the Olympics. We need to transform our population into sports enthusiasts,” Ms. Anjali said.

On the topic of age-fraud, Mr. Kunal stated that the government has taken measures to tackle this problem. “The government has issued a guideline where it is mandatory for all federations to issue identity cards for athletes. Once the athlete’s data, including date of birth, is captured, it cannot be manipulated,” Mr. Kunal said.

The Hindu Huddle is presented by the Sami-Sabinsa Group as the Presenting Partner. The event is co-powered by the Government of Telangana and held in association with Khaja Bandanawaz University.

The event is further supported by Bank of Baroda, Larsen & Toubro, Apollo Hospitals, IIM Sirmaur, ICFAI Group, TAFE, Wizzmon, Uttarakhand Government, Associate Partners; Casagrand, Realty Partner; Toyota, Luxury Car Partner; Amity University Bengaluru, University Partner; Harrow International School Bengaluru, Education Partner; Meghalaya Tourism, State Partner; and NDTV 24x7, TV Partner.

Watch the full session here: