Dutee Chand: The Indian GP will not be a high-quality competition

The 24-year-old sprinter also revealed her unhappiness with the federation's decision to continue with the staging of the tournament.

Following the announcement of Athletics Federation of India to limit Indian Grand Prix-1 to only national campers, sprinter Dutee Chand has come out to reveal her discontent over the standard of the tournament and the sprint field.

"Earlier, I had plans to take part in different competitions in Europe for which I had obtained visa. But due to the coronavirus pandemic, it is not possible to go to those places now," Dutee Chand revealed to The New Indian Express.

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"It’s also impossible to touch the required timings in the Indian GP. There are only eight entries in my category there and none of them are quality runners. So it will not be a high-quality competition. I will only be able improve my ranking points," the 24-year-old sprinter added.

Dutee Chand also revealed her unhappiness with the Federation regarding the fact that the athletes need to pay an entry fee and arrange their own travel bookings to participate in the event in Patiala from March 20.

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"It’s not fair that the federation should conduct a meet only for campers. The government is introducing various schemes to promote sports and sporting sporting talent across the country. But it reflects a sorry state of affairs if the athletes have to take care of the to and fro fare, boarding and pay an entry fee. The federation must understand that many athletes in our country belong to lower middle-class families," Dutee Chand quipped.

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Following the outbreak of coronavirus in India, a number of sporting events in India have been postponed or have been played behind closed doors - as per the directives of the government to limit the spread of the pathogen in Indian community. However, the Sprinter feels that the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) should have postponed the tournament and raised questions over the fact.

"In an Olympic year, the coronavirus outbreak has caused dark clouds over the career of many athletes. Many federations in our country have postponed events following guidelines issued by the government. I cannot understand why the AFI is conducting such a low-standard event at this hour.”