Unprecedented 6 ladies in AFI Athletes Fee; Neeraj amongst 3 male members

Former Indian Athlete Anju Bobby George. File
| Picture Credit score: Ok. Murali Kumar

Lengthy-jump nice Anju Bobby George was on Wednesday (January 8, 2025) named Chairperson of the Athletics Federation of India’s nine-strong athletes fee that options six ladies with javelin throw star Neeraj Chopra being its most outstanding male member.

The opposite ladies within the new panel are runner Jyotirmoyee Sikdar, discus thrower Krishna Poonia, hurdler M.D. Valsamma, steeplechaser Sudha Singh and runner Sunita Rani. George, a 2003 world championships bronze-winner, can also be a Senior Vice-President within the AFI.

All of them are retired and their induction is a noteworthy milestone within the AFI’s quest for gender parity in its set-up. The earlier Fee featured 4 ladies.

The Fee was unveiled on Wednesday (Jan. 8) after the elections held in October, 2024.

Two-time Olympic medal-winning Neeraj Chopra is among the 4 nominated members after consultations by the AFI’s Government Council.

Neeraj Chopra.
| Picture Credit score:
Getty Photographs

The opposite two male members of the Fee are 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable and newly-elected AFI president Bahadur Singh Sagoo, a shot put gold medal winner at 2002 Asian Video games. Sagoo was the chairman of the earlier Fee.

Outgoing AFI treasurer Madhu Kant Pathak, who was the Returning Officer for the elections, mentioned the polls had been held after following due course of.

“Election notification was issued and different guidelines and rules had been adopted. 5 members had been elected.

“Later, after session with the Government Council, 4 members together with Neeraj and Sable had been added as Athletes Fee member. Each Neeraj and Sable initially mentioned that they won’t be able to provide a lot time as they’re energetic athletes however they accepted,” mentioned Pathak.

Sumariwalla made ex-officio member

Outgoing AFI President Adille Sumariwalla will proceed to be part of the chief council as an ex-officio member as he is part of the World Athletics Council.

The 67-year-old Sumariwalla, who served as AFI president for 3 consecutive phrases from 2012, is presently an govt board member of World Athletics — the worldwide governing physique of the game.

“We amended the AFI structure final yr to the impact that any one who is within the World Athletics council will likely be an ex-officio member of the AFI govt council,” AFI Planning Fee Chairman Lalit Bhanot introduced on the concluding day of the Annual Basic Physique Assembly right here.

On Tuesday (Jan. 7), Sumariwalla had insisted that he’s not going anyplace and will likely be round to information the brand new office-bearers of the AFI and act because the physique’s spokesperson too.

On Wednesday (Jan. 8), Sagoo introduced that Sumariwalla may also be the chairman of the committee which is able to liaise with the federal government in addition to worldwide our bodies. As well as, he will likely be a member of the Ethics Fee of the AFI.

Home schedule

In one other resolution, Indian athletics’ first main nationwide senior championships of the season — the Federation Cup — will likely be held in Kozhikode, Kerala, from April 21-24. Haryana’s Panchkula was to host the occasion however expressed its lack of ability to take action because it had performed the Nationwide Inter-State Championships in June final yr.

This yr’s Nationwide Inter-State Senior Championships will likely be held from August 20 to 24 in Chennai, as proposed within the tentative calendar.

Nationwide Open Championships, earlier proposed to be held in Pune or Bengaluru, will now be staged in Ranchi from September 27 to 30.