Reigning world champion and 2016 Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu has said that building a champion requires teamwork between parents, coaches, and sports administrators.
Addressing the newly appointed assistant directors at the Sports Authority of India in an online session, Sindhu said: "The administrators must know the journey of every sportsperson. The future of Indian sports lies in the hands of young sports administrators like all of you. You must visit all the SAI regional centres and be aware of the performances of the players and be in touch with their parents. The parents' involvement is a lot and you need to take feedback from them."
"This feedback needs to be monitored. Moreover, players must be continuously tracked to avoid age fraud. You must also understand how the SAI coaching system works and if athletes are receiving the right diet and supplements at the various centres," she added.
The current world champion also credited her parents for her success in the 2016 Olympic Games. The shuttler had won the silver medal at the Games.
"Before the Rio Olympics, we shifted to the academy. My mother gave up her job to take care of me. My father took two years leave from his job. The challenge was to recover from the injury I suffered in 2015. I used to sit and play in the academy. I had to play 23 tournaments in a year to even qualify for the Olympics. My father's taking leave from his service really helped me. He used to take me to the Railways ground," Sindhu said.
In her address, the shuttler also complimented the government for coming up with schemes like Khelo India which would help groom youngsters from the grassroots level.
Currently, all sporting action across the world has come to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic. Sindhu said that this virus will present an opportunity for all authorities to bring in Indians in coaching roles at different federations.
"If the global pandemic continues, bringing coaches from abroad might become difficult, there are a lot of good players in our country who have played at the international level, and we can use them in a coaching capacity," Sindhu said.
( With inputs from ANI )