Elite Indian wrestlers training for next year's Commonwealth Games have been forced to pin down federation officials to reimburse their expenses for two overseas tournaments,domestic media reported on Wednesday. The wrestlers,who have in the past complained of poor diet in the national camp and government funds not reaching them,have accused the federation of not passing on money already received from the sports ministry,the Hindustan Times reported. Before we left,the federation had told us the ministry would reimburse the money on our return,but it is more than two months and we are still waiting, a wrestler told the paper. A federation official said the money,relating to two events in Belarus and Egypt in February and March respectively,would be returned to the wrestlers soon. The Indian government has earmarked 7 billion rupees ($149.7 million) for the preparation of elite athletes for the games,seen as a big advertisement for India's rapid economic growth. Indian wrestlers have performed consistently in international meets and their hopes were boosted after Sushil Kumar won a bronze at last year's Beijing Olympics. The Commonwealth Games will be staged in New Delhi from Oct. 3-14,2010.
