OCA gives time till July 22 to finalise Indian wrestling squad for Asiad

NEW DELHI: Despite the hectic parleys between the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), it has become certain there will be no change in deadline for submitting entries of the wrestlers for the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Sources have informed TOI that the last date to send entries by names stands July 22 after the OCA on Saturday refused to accept the plea of IOA president P T Usha and its joint secretary and acting CEO, Kalyan Chaubey, to extend the deadline till August 15, so that the trials for the same can be conducted between August 5 and 15.
Post elections in the OCA in Bangkok where Sheikh Talal of Al Sabah family was elected the new president of the continental body, the IOA representatives were told that they can at best be offered a two-week extension to send the entries of wrestlers.
For all other disciplines, the last date to send the final names as part of the Indian contingent is July 15.
The ad-hoc body will now have to rush with the trials in the coming weeks – it preferably plans to hold trials on July 20 – which means the protesting wrestlers will be unprepared. Since January 2023, the protest launched by Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshee Malikkh had grabbed eyeballs and headlines.
The inefficiency of the ad-hoc body has now come under glare as Bhupender Singh Bajwa and Suma Shirur, along with two coaches in the panel, were caught napping after the OCA’s refusal to extend the deadline till August 15.
For several other wrestlers, early announcement of trial dates will come as good news. But it would be interesting to see how the protesting wrestlers prepare for it at a short notice.