Sachin Tendulkar urges sports minister to back suspended Sarita Devi

November 20, 2014

Sachin sarithaKuala Lumpur, Nov 20: Veteran boxer Sarita Devi, who is currently serving a provisional suspension, has found support from batting lengend Sachin Tendulkar who has written a letter to the Sports Minister urging him to support her and ensure that her career is not terminated prematurely.

In a letter to Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, dated November 15, the iconic batsman said he is disconcerted by the reports that Devi faces a potential ban threatening her career.

"I would urge you to kindly look into this issue urgently and ensure that she is given competent support so that her career is not threatened and ends in a premature manner," Tendulkar wrote.

Devi lost in the semifinals of the women's lightweight (60kg) competition at Incheon, South Korea, in September, and tried to give her medal to her opponent at the presentation ceremony as a protest.

Devi, upset with the controversial decision, refused to bend down to let the medal be placed over her neck. She then took the medal and slipped it onto the neck of Park Ji-Na, who had been declared the winner of their semifinal bout.

The South Korean boxer, an eventual silver medalist, tried to give the bronze medal back to Devi, then left it on the podium.

Tendulkar said being a sportsman he could relate to Devi's emotional turmoil: "As a fellow sportsperson, I can relate to the emotional turmoil which Ms. Devi must have undergone leading to the unfortunate outburst. Subsequently, she has regretted and deserves another chance to continue her pursuits," the 41-year old wrote.

Tendulkar said the Manipuri boxer should be allowed to compete at the highest level since she had already apologised for her behaviour.

"As you may be aware, she has already apologised for her unsportsmanlike behaviour. As a country, we should make every effort to ensure that Ms. Devi is pardoned and allowed to pursue her boxing skills at the highest level," he said.

Tendulkar requested Sonowal to consider forming a task force of senior officials from the Indian Olympic Association and the Boxing Federation and defend her case in front of the governing body AIBA.

"With limited knowledge on the ongoing process, I would sincerely request to consider forming a task force of senior officials from the Indian Olympic Association, the Indian Boxing Federation backed with strong legal minds under your stewardship.

"The objective of this task force should be to deter any potential move by the Governing body to cause irreversible harm to Ms. Devis's career by placing compelling arguments in her defence. This is critical as Ms. Devi belongs to a set of passionate sportspersons who have taken immense pride in representing the country and deserve all the support and backing from various stakeholders including Government of India," he wrote.

Tendulkar urged the Minister to take the necessary actions.

"I am sure you will look into this matter and take due actions in a prompt manner."

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News Network
June 10,2020

Jun 10: "It is never too late to fight for the right cause," said opening batsman Chris Gayle as he came out in support of former T20 World Cup-winning skipper Darren Sammy. The debate around racism in sport has kickstarted once again after former Windies T20 World Cup-winning skipper Darren Sammy alleged racism during his stint with SunRisers Hyderabad in the 2014 Indian Premier League. Taking note of Sammy's revelation, Gayle tweeted: "It's never too late to fight for the right cause or what you've experienced over the years! So much more to your story, @darensammy88. Like I said, it's in the game".

Earlier, Gayle had also revealed that he too has been a victim of racism, and added that racism is something that has been bothering cricket as well.

On Tuesday, Sammy had released a video specifying that the racial slurs against him were used within the SunRisers camp.

"I have played all over the world and I have been loved by many people, I have embraced all dressing rooms where I have played, so I was listening to Hasan Minhaj as to how some of the people in his culture describe black people," Sammy said in a video posted on his Instagram account.

"This does not apply to all people, so after I found out a meaning of a certain word, I had said I was angry on finding out the meaning and it was degrading, instantly I remembered when I played for SunRisers Hyderabad, I was being called exactly the same word which is degrading to us black people," he added.

Sammy said that at the time when he was being called with the word, he didn't know the meaning, and his team-mates used to laugh every time after calling him by that name.

"I will be messaging those people, you guys know who you are, I must admit at that time when I was being called as that word I thought the word meant strong stallion or whatever it is, I did not know what it meant, every time I was called with that word, there was laughter at that moment, I thought teammates are laughing so it must be something funny," Sammy said.

The former Windies skipper has been a vocal supporter of the protests that are currently going on in the United States over the death of an African-American man named George Floyd.

Sammy had also made an appeal to the ICC and other cricket boards to support the fight against social injustice and racism.

Ever since the demise of Floyd, protests erupted from the demonstrations in cities from San Francisco to Boston.

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News Network
June 9,2020

Jun 9: Former West Indies skipper Darren Sammy has released a video, alleging racism within the SunRisers Hyderabad camp. Last week, Sammy had lost his cool after learning the meaning of the word "Kalu", which he alleged was directed at him during his Indian Premier League (IPL) stint with the SunRisers Hyderabad. The T20 World Cup-winning Windies skipper had said that he along with Sri Lanka player Thisara Perera were sometimes called that word when they played for SunRisers Hyderabad. However, Sammy did not specify as to who directed these slurs at him, but now the player has released a video, saying he will message all those who called him that word.

"I have played all over the world and I have been loved by many people, I have embraced all dressing rooms where I have played, so I was listening to Hasan Minhaj as to how some of the people in his culture describe black people," Sammy said in a video posted on his Instagram account.

"This does not apply to all people, so after I found out a meaning of a certain word, I had said I was angry on finding out the meaning and it was degrading, instantly I remembered when I played for SunRisers Hyderabad, I was being called exactly the same word which is degrading to us black people," he added.

Sammy said that at the time when he was being called with the word, he didn''t know the meaning, and his team-mates used to laugh every time after calling him by that name.

"I will be messaging those people, you guys know who you are, I must admit at that time when I was being called as that word I thought the word meant strong stallion or whatever it is, I did not know what it meant, every time I was called with that word, there was laughter at that moment, I thought teammates are laughing so it must be something funny," Sammy said.

"Now, I realise it was degrading, I will be texting you guys and I will ask you as to when you called me with that name, did you all mean it in any bad way or form? I have had great memories in all my dressing rooms, so all those who used to you call me with that word, think about it, let's have a conversation, if it was in a bad way then I would be really disappointed," he added.

The former Windies skipper has been a vocal supporter of the protests that are currently going on in the United States over the death of an African-American man named George Floyd.

Sammy had also made an appeal to the ICC and other cricket boards to support the fight against social injustice and racism.

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Agencies
March 25,2020

Lausanne, Mar 25: The World Archery has hailed as a 'brave decision' the International Olympic Committee (IOC) move to postpone the 2020 Tokyo Olympics until next year due to coronavirus pandemic.

"We commend the conscientious and brave decision taken by Tokyo 2020 and the International Olympic Committee to delay this summer's Games in the face of an unprecedented challenge to humanity," Ugur Erdener, the World Archery president, said in an official statement.

The decision to postpone the Summer Olympics was confirmed by the IOC, on Tuesday, after the organising body for the event and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to reschedule the quadrennial event in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This is not an easy situation, especially for the athletes who had been training hard for Tokyo 2020. I hope that everyone understands why this decision has been made and I urge archers around the world to retain hope and reset for this new timetable," he added.

The IOC has, however, said that the original name of Tokyo 2020 will remain intact irrespective of the fact that it will take place next year.

The Tokyo Olympic Games were slated to be held from July 24 to August 9.

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