Gaganjeet Bhullar’s plea for TOPS inclusion ‘under process’

Published at :March 29, 2024 at 9:49 PM

Modified at :March 30, 2024 at 6:12 PM

(Courtesy : Getty Images)

SAI is yet to respond to the 11-time Asian Tour champion and Asian Games medallist’s application sent in January 2024.

One of the most decorated golfers to have come out of the country, Gaganjeet Bhullar, is enduring an anxious wait to get included in the Sports Ministry’s Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS). The flagship scheme offers financial assistance for international competitions, including travel costs, coaching and training, apart from Out-Of-Pocket (OPA) allowance which varies for core and development athletes.

The core athletes receive INR 50,000 per month as OPA while development sportspersons get INR 25,000 per month for the same. Currently, Anirban Lahiri, Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar are part of the TOPS core group, while Avani Prashanth and Shubhankar Sharma have been put in the TOPS development group.

Bhullar was part of the 2006 Doha Asian Games silver medal-winning team, comprising of Anirban Lahiri, Chiragh Kumar and Joseph Chakola. He has won 11 times on the Asian Tour, including the BNI Indonesian Masters last November. He also boasts of a DP World Tour title – Fiji International in 2018.

The 35-year-old sent his application to TOPS CEO Pushpesh Kumar Garg on January 8 this year, a copy of which is with Khel Now, but is yet to receive any response on the same.

The Indian Golf Union (IGU), the national sports federation, also didn’t push Bhullar’s case, despite the latter having an illustrious amateur career that saw him clinch the World Junior Masters Championship in 2005, apart from representing the country at multiple international events like the Eisenhower Trophy and Nomura Cup among others.

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“I sent my application to SAI a couple of months back. I don’t know what’s the deadline. It’s not under the PGTI (Professional Golf Tour of India) or any other. So, I have spoken to IGU as well. We all do have sponsors regarding covering our common expenses, but this actually helps you with your coaching, to buy some equipment or if you want to work with some mental trainer, physiotherapist and so on. You can actually build your team. So, it’s definitely important,” Bhullar told Khel Now after completing his second round at the ongoing Hero Indian Open in Gurugram.

Bhullar is placed 53rd in the latest Olympic Golf Rankings, created by the International Golf Federation (IGF), behind Shubhankar Sharma, who is placed 46th.

The top-15 world-ranked players will be eligible for the Olympics, with a limit of four players from a given country. Beyond the top 15, players will be eligible based on the world rankings, with a maximum of two eligible players from each country that does not already have two or more players among the top 15. This means only a total of 60 male golfers and as many female golfers will compete at the Paris Olympic Games. June 17 is the cut-off date for the final list of participants.