Anju picked to be flag-bearer

After keeping things under wraps for quite some time, the Indian Olympic Association today announced the name of Anju Bobby George as the flag-bearer at the opening ceremony in Athens next Friday. Before deciding on Anju’s name, IOA president Suresh Kalmadi said, ‘‘The IOA held consultations with various federations and it was decided that this time the honour should go to athletics. And there was only one name that came up and that is Anju.’’

Asked why Karnam Malleswari, bronze medallist at Sydney, was not considered, Kalmadi said, ‘‘After all only one can carry the flag. And we decided it has to be a woman and we thought Anju deserved to be chosen.’’