Anju can be the light through dope cloud

No wonder, then, that Anju Bobby George has emerged as an icon of the Indian contingent. Or that chief coach Bahadur Singh is keen to project her as the favourite, almost even before the question was put to him. ‘‘Anju is our main hope’’, Bahadur said just after the star athlete and her husband Bobby had finished breakfast today.

Anju, making her maiden appearance in this meet, looks set to win the gold even though in the current Asian rankings she is placed fourth. She is looking in better form, both physically and psychologically, than ever before.

She’s also aware that this could be her final chance to fulfill her ambition of crossing the seven-metre mark. A good performance here could also inspire her at the World Athletics Final in Morocco next week.

Another first-timer is also a gold contender: US-based discus thrower Vikas Gowda, who was the best Asian on view with 62.04 metres in the World Championship in Helsinki. Even though he holds the national record at 64.69, he should again be on the top even with a slightly lower performance.

Coach Bahadur is also pinning strong hopes on the women’s 4×400 metres relay. S Geetha, Manjeet Kaur, Chitra Soman and Rajvinder Kaur are capable and confident — especially Geetha, who is aiming to break 52 seconds for 400 metres.

India haven’t done well in the last two Asian meets — no golds last time, one 4×400 womn’s relay gold in 2002 — mainly because they sent second-string contingents. Given that this is as strong a squad as possible, there is reason for optimism. In any case, this will be a true measure of India’s athletics standing in Asia.

Food for thought
It’s not exactly what the nutritionists recommend but India’s athletes have had to make do with a diet of watermelon and pastries. There is a lavish spread at the hotel buffet but little that Indians can eat. The beef and pork was left untouched even by the non-veggies, and the plight of vegetarians is worse. Some enterprising athletes walked across the road to the deli to pick up juices and sandwiches and Vikas Gowda had some success with a Chinese meal. But coach Bahadur Singh has little sympathy: ‘‘We are all seasoned athletes and we should take these things in our stride.’’