Dutee Chand's seemingly desperate need to put one of her cars up for sale to fund her training has started an online debate -- Is India doing enough to help its athletes? (More Sports News)
Chand, 24, recently posted an advertisement to sell her BWM car, which she had reportedly bought for Rs 30 lakh in 2018. "I want to sell my BMW car. If anyone wants to buy, contact me on messenger," she wrote on her Facebook page, only to be deleted later. But it was too late. It became one of the biggest talking points, with every major news outlet carrying the report, sympathetically.
"It was a difficult decision for me to put up that post… Had there been an Olympics, I would have been all set, but, as the Games have been postponed by a year, I am unable to support myself," Dutee told rediff.com.
Former tennis player Somdev Devvarman shared one of the news on his Twitter on Tuesday, with a message which reflects the generally accepted fact that sports funding in the country is still way below par.
"When our athletes win, it's almost always despite the system, not because of it," Devvarman wrote.
But another fact is, the situation is improving. Just look at the number of sporting leagues, and the number of schemes launched by the government. There are also many private institutions doing their bit to help India become a sporting giant.
One of them is Parth Jindal, director of JSW Sports. The 30-year-old businessman, who founded Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS), in his reply to Devvarman claimed that they "have offered to support her [Chand] so many times at IIS. The offer is still wide open".
Devvarman then replied as saying: "I can't speak on how and why she spent her money or funds. I don't know her personal situation. I feel it would be best of all go Govt. funds and prize money were transparent. The larger point I was trying to make is that most athletes make it despite the system. Still stand by that."
Then came Jindal's reply: "The system is improving and there are many that are working to improve the systems. There is us, there is OGQ and many other private organizations. Even the government has improved leaps and bounds. We have ways to go but things are definitely getting a lot better".
Others also weighed in on the debate. Here are some reactions:
It's no doubt that Chand is, as one user said, one of the 'privileged' lots in Indian sports, but she still needs every possible support and backing to help realise fulfill her full potential. That includes loads of money.
"It is a very costly car which I bought at Rs 30 lakh and its maintenance has become an issue for me. Moreover, I don’t have the parking slot too to keep it as I have two more cars. So, I have decided to sell it off so that the money raised can be handy to continue training," Chand had said earlier.
