The country’s sports administration has much to learn from Mittal Champions Trust.
Mittal Champions Trust (MCT), which funded the Olympic journeys of several Indian athletes in the last decade, has shut shop. Their nine-year-long association with Indian sport, amounting to a Rs 80 crore investment, yielded over 30 medals at various multi-discipline mega events, including a clutch of Olympic podiums. But it is the non-profit trust’s blueprint of functioning that remains its legacy.
The government — SAI, sports ministry, national federations, et al — had till then been slumbering, rousing themselves only at the last moment to release funds, which is only the start of what can be described as professional preparation. The MCT’s pilot project gave the country an organised set-up that could cater to the athlete’s needs, in ultra-quick time, minus the debilitating red tape typical of the country’s sports administration.
Abhinav Bindra would arguably never have managed to put together his team of coaches and experts without financial aid and prompt delivery from the MCT for the Beijing Games, in which he went on to win the gold.
Some of the MCT’s athletes are already on the radar of other trusts like Olympic Gold Quest and JSW Sports, even as the government increases its support. However, merely allotting funds for training will not suffice.
Every athlete needs customised help, which means the government will need to shed its conservatism and reach out in ways it hasn’t done before.
