By IANS
Kolkata : West Bengal is looking at a gloomy future in athletics if the recently concluded state athletics meet is any indication, a senior coach said here Tuesday.
Sports Authority of India (SAI) coach Kuntal Roy, who boasts of preparing athletes of international fame like Soma Biswas, Sushmita Singh Roy and Saraswati Saha, appeared a worried man after the 57th State Athletic Championship in August.
Talking to IANS here Tuesday, Roy said: “For the last two decades, West Bengal has produced athletes who have excelled in the international arena. Be it Jyotirmoyee Sikdar, Soma Biswas or Susmita Singha Roy, girls from Bengal always flourished in athletics. This time, there is only Debashree Haldar, a 400 metres runner.”
“I have not spotted any exceptional talent during this meet. There are success stories like middle-distance runner Jhuma Khatun. But she has not improved from where she started three years back,” Roy said, shaking his head.
“In the men’s category, high jumper Harishankar Rai cannot be called a prospect. He is already a name. But I saw none who can step into his shoes,” he said.
“For success in international arena, we need athletes with lanky bodies. Long lower limbs and a pencil thin structure help in this field. But it is a problem with the current crop of athletes,” he said.
“They are stocky, with short limbs and a bit too flabby. It’s a genetic problem. This cannot be the physique for success,” he said.
Asked if he could spot some talent, he named Pinky Pramanik in sprints and Juma Khatun in middle distance. But in the jumping and throwing events, he said, there are no prospects.
Asked which athlete could step into the shoes of Sushmita and Soma, he said: “I don’t know yet. I see no one. In the 400 metres category, only Deboshree Haldar can do well. But it is surprising that an entire state meet has thrown up just one prospect.”