Three Indians qualified for the Tokyo Olympics at last week’s Race Walking Nationals in Ranchi. They must thank three international judges, the number necessary for an event to be recognized, for taking a health risk by getting on various flights, trains, and undergoing Covid-19 tests to reach Ranchi.
A Slovak, a Swiss and a Romanian arrived at the two-day event after an emergency call from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) officials, who had sleepless nights as they could not find qualified judges to take trips. international due to the pandemic.
“Many judges rejected our application due to COVID-related restrictions in their countries. For this event to be recognized by World Athletics, we needed to have three international judges and that also from different nations. If we had not met those requirements, these athletes would not have earned a place for Tokyo despite making the cut according to the schedules, “said AFI President Adille Sumariwalla.
The AFI’s fortunes changed when they approached the Slovak Martik Skarba, a former walker. He competed for more than a decade before becoming a marching judge. Skarba not only agreed to travel, but also began making calls to convince other judges to travel to India on short notice. The circle of his great friends in the walking community helped. “Ninety percent of them refused due to Covid-related restrictions. But I kept trying. I didn’t want the Indian athletes to be robbed of their chance to qualify, ”says Skarba.
He got the Swiss Frederic Bianchi, who will be the chief judge in Tokyo, and the Romanian Dr. Alexandru Stefan to pack their bags.
Stefan, a qualified doctor, first had to calm his worried wife before leaving for Ranchi. A daily allowance of $ 100, less than what judges are paid in Europe, didn’t make it any easier.
“When I told my wife that I had to go to India, she was not happy at all. But marching is my passion and I had to come to India to help athletes, ”said Dr. Stefan. It took him 24 hours of travel to reach the place. Bianchi had to take a train and three flights to travel from Collombey-Muraz in Switzerland to the capital of Jharkhand. His post on Facebook gives an idea of how difficult the trip was. “We did it!” read Ranchi’s post. “He had to come. I had to undergo several tests and it was a long journey, but I am glad I was able to do it ”, Bianchi
Dr. Stephan didn’t want to miss the opportunity to reconnect with the march. After school, he had to choose between track and field or a college degree in medicine. Dr. Stephan, who works in the research wing of Johnson & Johnson, never lost his passion for the sport and found time to complete qualification courses for judges. saying.
‘Not the best technique’
Sandeep Kumar, Priyanka Goswami and Rahul Kumar are the three who qualified in the 20-kilometer race for the Olympics.
Sandeep, who won gold on Saturday with a new national record, was warned twice during his career. Bianchi feels that Indian runners need to work harder to perfect their technique. Bianchi also officiated in the under-20 race march (10km) on Sunday and was not impressed with the young crop from India.
“The juniors technique was terrible. The coaches have to work really hard, ”he said.
Dr. Stefan says the judges interacted with the participants after the event and briefed them on the areas they can work on. “They all have the same flaws or strengths,” he said. But as he prepares to travel home, he has other things on his mind.
“I’m not sure if my wife will let me in when she gets back,” he said jokingly.
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She is a freelance blogger, writer, and speaker, and writes for various entertainment magazines.