Olympics ban on India stays as IOC rejects half-baked reforms

Indian sportspersons hoping for a small spot in the international limelight in spite of the system will have to wait longer, as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has extended its ban on India.
 
The Indian Olympic Association had recently proposed some half-hearted reforms, but these have failed to appease the IOC.
 
In essence, a statement from the IOC today said the proposed Indian sports reforms were not enough to bring it back into the Olympic fold. It stuck to its stand that the Indian association must abide by the 'charge-sheet' clause to ensure good governance.

"The (IOC) executive board heard a report that the IOA's general assembly had approved most of the amendments to its constitution requested by the IOC, but one specific clause had not been adopted.

''This clause, which deals specifically with the eligibility of members, is key to the good governance ... and needs to be fully accepted before the suspended IOA can proceed with the [internal] elections. An official notification of the IOC's position will be sent to the IOA."

In a special general body meeting last month, the Indian association IOA had proposed a compromise formula on an earlier IOC directive to bar charge-sheeted persons from contesting elections.

The IOA proposed that the sanction would apply only to officials who are convicted and sentenced to a jail term of more than two years; but the IOC is clearly not impressed by the weak limitation.

It is obvious to observers that tainted politician Suresh Kalmadi, who for years ran sports into the ground before he was accused of massive corruption in the conduct of the Delhi Commonwealth Games in 2010, is a key figure in the whole issue.

Kalmadi is keen on a return as the fountainhead of Indian sport. But whether he succeeds or not would make little difference in the desert of Indian sports administration, ruled by a few chieftains.

"Since the suspension of the Indian Olympic Association in December 2012, the IOC has been working towards finding a solution to improve good governance within the National Olympic Committee (NOC)," the IOC statement said.

"The IOC provided the IOA with a roadmap and sent observers to the IOA's General Assembly (GA) that took place on 25 August. The EB heard a report that the GA had approved most of the amendments to the IOA's constitution requested by the IOC, but one specific clause had not been adopted.

"This clause, which deals specifically with the eligibility of members, is key to the good governance of the NOC and needs to be fully accepted before the suspended IOA can proceed with the elections. An official notification of the IOC's position will be sent to the IOA."

India was suspended from the Olympic movement after Kalmadi's colleague Lalit Bhanot, who is facing corruption charges linked to the scandal-hit Commonwealth Games, was elected secretary-general of the IOA.

The IOC had suspended the IOA and told it to amend its constitution to keep officials facing criminal or corruption charges out of the election process.