Thu, Jul 24 03:57 AM
The Indian women's 4x400m relay squad might have shone at the Asian Grand Prix series last month to make the cut for the Olympics, but with the team members not training together, the squad's preparations for the big stage in Beijing look hazy.
Five members of the team - Manjeet Kaur, Mandeep Kaur, Chitra K Soman, Sini Jose and MR Poovamm - are away in Kuala Lumpur as part of their preparations, while Satti Geetha, who was instrumental in India's victory at the Bangkok and Korat GPs, is training in Secunderabad. Geetha has been a key member of the quartet since 2003. The team had finished seventh at the Athens Olympics.
Jose and Poovamma are relative greenhorns on the international stage, so the onus will be on the quartet of Manjeet, Mandeep, Soman and Geetha.
N Ramesh, the personal coach of Geetha, did not say when his ward was likely to join the other team members. "It has not yet been decided," he said from Secunderabad. Giving a different logic, Ramesh said that if she were to join the other members in Malaysia, her training would be upset.
The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has sent the relay team members to Malaysia, along with triple jumper Renjith Maheshwary and heptathlete JJ Shobha, to acclimatise to the time difference between China and India. Moreover, Malaysia is closer to the venue and the team will not be jetlagged when they arrive in Beijing on August 13. The athletics events begin on August 15.
Titles like the 4x400m have been won in the past on the sheer strength of better coordination even if the team do not have the fastest runners in the field. A classic example has been the USA's women's 4x400m team through the years, whose members are generally world-beaters in their own right. Still, teams like Cuba, with better planning, have managed to topple them on quite a few occasions.
In fact, despite being composed of a good bunch of quarter-milers, India finished fourth at the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi because of the lack of coordination. Leading after the first two legs, the team were pushed first to the second spot, and then the third, until one of the runners dropped the baton and were pushed to the fourth spot.
Speaking to The Indian Express, former national coach JS Saini stressed on the importance of all six members of the longer version (4x400m) training together. "For better results, it's extremely important. Baton exchange is vital to be in command after the first leg. Training together also means better team spirit is fostered, which is important. Slow runners who train together can always outclass speedy runners in an event like relay," he said from Patiala.
But AFI secretary Lalit Kumar Bhanot insisted that the team members will have sufficient time to train in Beijing as the event is scheduled at the end of the competition. "The girls will have enough time to practice together," he said.
If you are young, have a hectic social life where you drink and party, and have applied for a job, chances are you will lose out to someone who is a teetotaler.
| Copyright © Yahoo Web Services India Pvt Ltd. All rights reserved. Questions or Comments Privacy Policy -Terms of Service - Copyright Notice |
