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Row, row, row to gold... without Army we are nothing, says rowing federation president
Rajlaxmi Singh Deo feels that more attention from the government and the Sports authority of India will help rowers win more medals at world events
Rajlaxmi Singh Deo, president of the Rowing federation of India, who is in city to witness the 37th senior National rowing championship at the Army Rowing Node (ARN), College of Military Engineering (CME), feels that more attention from the government and the Sports authority of India (SAI) will help rowers win more medals at world events.Deo speals to Jigar Hindocha about the condition of SAI rowing centres in the country.
What do you feel about SAI rowing centres?
Most of the centres are not in good condition. Currently, many centres in the country are getting revamped. SAI also need good coaches and equipment. SAI rowing centre in Kerala, which is under the supervision of coach Saji Thomas, is in good shape. The other centre which is in good shape is SAI Jagatpur where the coach is PT Paulose.
How can the government and SAI play a role in improving the future for Indian rowers?
Government is supporting us, but more response is required. Support in funding, fulfilment of required equipment and all other essential things need to be addressed by them on regular basis.
What type of support do coaches need from the government?
Indian coaches need to be given the same payment as foreign coaches. The government should also treat medal winners and coaches equally. Coaches should be felicitated in the same manner as the medal winners.
In what way are Army personnel playing their role in the Indian rowing scenario?
It is because of the Army that Indian rowing is still standing tall, and is even considered one of the better teams in Asia. Army coaches, staff all are helping the sport to reach to a greater level.
How is the national rowing championship going?
The current 37th championship is running very smoothly. Except for West Bengal, every state is here and from what I have seen, it is running very well. After Maharashtra, such rowing facilities are only available in Madhya Pradesh.
How are you looking at the national and international tournaments keeping in mind the upcoming World Championship 2019 and Tokyo 2020 Olympics?
After the present championship we will select our rowers who can be part of the team in world championship 2019 to be held in Austria. We need to build strong teams which can compete against the European teams.We have kept separate events for Army background rowers because rowers outside the Army cannot match up to the Army ones.
What are your views on talent in the women’s section?
Actually, I am very disappointed with the SAI centres, who are not able to produce any women medal winners. I don’t see any women rower who is capable of representing India at the Olympic level. Being a women president it feels very bad.
Do we need foreign coaches in rowing?
I am not in favour of foreign coaches. In the past, we had three foreign coaches and we imbibed a lot of things from them, but we do have a lot of experts from our own county who understands our rowers well. National coach Ismail Baig is doing a great job right now.
