ATHLETICS | AFI formulates plans for excelling in 2036 Olympics

AFI strategizes for 2036 Olympics with focus on athlete-friendly ecosystem, domestic competitions, foreign exposure, coaching, and sports science.

The Athletics Federation of India (AFI)’s brainstorming meeting to formulate a strategic plan for excelling in the 2036 Olympics identified core areas which needed attention and the necessity to create a friendly ecosystem for the athletes, coaches and other stakeholders.

The AFI has decided to streamline the calendar to ensure that the athletes will have enough domestic competitions so that they can peak at the right time before major competitions. The AFI will also see that the athletes get adequate foreign exposure.

Speaking to The Hindu after the conclusion of the five-day meeting, the AFI president Adille Sumariwala said there will be two point strategy starting with the junior programme – mainly the National Inter-district Junior Athletic Meet (NIDJAM) and the Elite programme.

The AFI has decided to decentralise the national camps after the Paris Olympics and at the same time will allow institutions like Railways, Army, Navy, Police and academies run by JSW and Reliance Foundation to conduct camps at their respective centres.

“We are changing the structure of the national camps, allowing it to spread to other regions. Instead of holding a centralized national camp with an intake of 150 athletes, we want to spread it across the country.

“We will accord national camp status to training centres of institutions and academies. We will already have a monitoring cell, and we will keep a close watch on the progress of athletes attached to these centres,’’ said the AFI president.

Sumariwala said the big thrust in the coming years will be on producing more level one coaches in the country.