TOPS sanctions tennis player Rohan Bopanna’s participation in tournaments from January to June at cost of approximately 30 lakhs

Khel Today Bureau

NEW DELHI: Indian tennis men’s doubles player Rohan Bopanna has had his proposal to play 11 tournaments from January to June 2021 accompanied with his coach Scott Davidoff and physio Gaurang Shukla sanctioned by the Mission Olympic Cell in a meeting held earlier today. Bopanna is currently ranked world number 39 in the men’s doubles rankings and a semifinalist at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The total amount sanctioned for Bopanna’s participation in these tournaments is approximately Rs. 27.61 lakhs. Bopanna has already received Rs. 1.24 crores from TOPS through the current Olympic cycle.

The committee has also sanctioned the proposal of men’s tennis doubles player Divij Sharan to play 14 tournaments from January to June. The proposal of Sharan has been sanctioned by the committee at a total cost of approximately Rs. 30 lakhs (including airfare). Prior to this sanction being given, Sharan had received Rs. 80.59 Lakhs in funding from TOPS in the Olympics cycle.

Asian champion Vinesh Phogat will continue to train overseas till the Olympic Games in July this year after her proposal to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme, routed through the Wrestling Federation of India was approved, to train in Hungary and Poland after she finishes her high-altitude stint in Bulgaria.
Phogat who secured India the 53kg class Olympic quota in September 2019 at the World Championships, will train in Budapest until June 9, travel for the Poland Open (June 9 to 13) and return to Budapest to be based there till July 2. Her coach Woller Akos, sparring partner Priyanka and physiotherapist Poornima Raman Ngomdir will be with her throughout.
The cost of her proposal for training and competition is Rs. 20.21 lakhs. She has so far received financial support of Rs. 1.13 crore from the Target Olympic Podium Scheme.

The MOC has also sanctioned a proposal from rowers Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh to train for five weeks from June 1 in Pocinho High Performance Centre in Portugal in preparation for the Olympic Games. The doubles scullers achieved Olympic qualification earlier this month in Tokyo. Their camp in Poland will cost around Rs. 21 lakh.

Rowers Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh were moved from the development group to the core group while wrestlers Seema Bisla and Sumit Malik, who earned quota places at the World Olympic qualifiers recently, have been added to the core group. Tennis player Ankita Raina who recently broke into the world top 100 in women’s doubles and partnered Sania Mirza in the Billie Jean King Cup has also been added to the TOPS core group.