The Sports Authority of India (SAI) on Wednesday has decided to extend the contract of 32 foreign coaches in 11 disciplines to the end of September next year to ensure continuity in the players' practice until the Tokyo Olympics. Of these 32, top coaches include Santiago Nieva and Rafael Bergamasco in boxing. While, Graham Reid in men's hockey and Pavel Smirnov in the shooting. The contracts for many of these coaches were to expire in September this year.
National football coach Igor Stimac's contract was also extended, although it has nothing to do with the Olympics. He was appointed for a two-year term in May last year. Earlier this month, the Sports Ministry had said that contracts for all foreign coaches would be extended by the end of September next year. SAI said that the decision was taken for the players participating in the Tokyo Olympic Games to continue their training as these games have been postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 epidemic.
India has suffered a major setback before the Olympics preparations. The World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) has decided to extend the suspension of India's National Dope Test Laboratory (NDTL) for another six months. On behalf of WADA, it was stated that the suspension was enhanced as the lab was not complying the rules with international standards.
Significantly, in August last year, WADA suspended NDTL for the first time for six months. The latest inspection of the global body has revealed that even now some of the criteria have not been met.