The crisis over India rowing appears to deepen even as the competition has started at the 2026 ASian Games, which are currently taking place in Aichi-Nagoya.
A late change in the roster of crew members has come to the annoyance of Indian rowers, who have reportedly threatened to go on strike over the issue.
A report by the Press Trust of India (PTI) has now revealed that while the event started on Wednesday (September 23), the rowers are still displeased and are planning to lodge a complaint with the Sports Ministry after the event finished on Thursday (September 24).
“Our combinations were changed in the last minute and that has affected our performances. Suddenly, you are putting a different rower to row just before the event starts, how do you adjust with that? The result can be anything, say in pairs or fours, where you need synchronisation and rhythm, etc.
“Yes, we were helpless; we had to compete. But we were forced (to compete) in a way the coaches and the federation wanted. We plan to make a complaint about this to the sports ministry after the Games,” a rower was quoted as saying by the PTI on the condition of anonymity.
The Rowing Federation of India (PTI) has maintained that all issues were sorted out all this while.
Meanwhile, RFI President Balaji Maradapa claimed that the changes were forced due to the change in schedule
“Most of these players are young and one former coach who has been involved in rowing for more than 20 years is influencing them. I have told the players not to be influenced by a person sitting more than 10,000 kms away from here. The matter is resolved now. They competed today and will compete tomorrow also,” said Balaji to PTI.
“At the managers’ meeting (a day before the start of competitions), it was decided to change combinations and bring in new rowers. We needed to take a call. It was done in the interest of the team as a whole. We have a rowing expert from Australia (Antony Patterson) who has worked for seven years here in Japan. We have to trust in his expert advice. He (Antony Patterson) and our two senior Indian coaches took the decision just after the managers’ meeting,” he added.