Indian Deaflympics contingent refuse to leave Delhi airport to protest their insult by the government
- A team of 46 Olympians represented India in the 23rd Summer Deaflympics at Samsun in Turkey
- They were visibly angry when they expected a grand welcome but to their dismay, not even a single person was there to receive them
- They are unhappy with the government, claiming that Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel did not speak to them, let alone acknowledge their victory
FollowAfter representing India at the 23rd Summer Deaflympics at Samsun in Turkey and returning with five medals including one gold, the Olympians refused to leave Delhi airport on Tuesday, July 1, protesting against the lack of acknowledgement or appreciation of their success at the tournament.
The contingent, comprising 46 athletes and their support staff, was visibly angry when they expected a grand welcome but to their dismay, not even a single person was there to receive them.
The Olympians won a gold, a silver and three bronze medals at the Deaflympics.
The contingent consisting of 46 athletes, as well as support staff, are unhappy with the government, claiming that Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel did not speak to them, let alone acknowledge their victory.
"We celebrate the success of the Olympics players and even Paralympics athletes then why can't we give the same recognition to these players. This is our best show in Deaflympics including a gold medal which is the best performance by India," Ketan Shah, project officer and interpreter at All India Sports Council for the Deaf (AISCD), told NDTV in an interview.
When the players wanted to speak to sports minister Vijay Goel, he allegedly refused even to acknowledge them.
“These medal winners made the nation proud but no one not even sports minister here to welcome us. We also tried to get in touch with the Director General of the Sports Authority of India and Sports Minister Vijay Goel, but they didn’t pay any heed. We had mailed them and informed them on July 25 itself that we will be coming on August 1, but we haven’t got any reply. Since morning, we have been calling them, and no one is ready to entertain us. No one is here to greet or meet the players, and it’s a bit let down for the team,” Ketan added.
Virender Singh secured gold in the 74kg freestyle wrestling while Ajay Kumar and Sumit Dahiya bagged bronze medals in 65kg and 97kg respectively. Golfer Diksha Dagar clinched silver while Prithvi Sekhar and Jafreen Shaik earned bronze in men’s doubles tennis event.
