Disappointment for Arjun Lal and Arvind Singh

For rowers Arjun Lal and Arvind Singh who qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, there was huge disappointment with the scheduled trip to Portugal for intensive training ahead of the Games getting cancelled.

With the visa not approved and also the fact that a 14-day quarantine is mandatory for anyone going from India to Portugal, the trip has been cancelled and they will be back to their regular training centre — Army Rowing Node in Pune.

Arjun and Arvind were scheduled to train for five weeks from June 1 at the Pocinho High Performance Centre in Portugal as part of the preparations for the Olympics. The double-scullers were also sanctioned ₹21 lakh by the Mission Olympic Cell on Monday.

“The compulsory quarantine is not acceptable as it means a long gap in training with just two months away from the Olympics,” confirmed Rajalaxmi Singh Deo, president, Rowing Federation of India.

“Luckily, the rowers got a feel of the conditions in Tokyo since the qualifiers were held there. It has been a terrific feat for both Arjun and Arvind to make the cut,” she said.

“It is unfortunate that the Portugal camp has to be cancelled. The rowers will be back in the Army Rowing Node for normal training. We hope to get a good result,” Rajalaxmi told The Hindu.

She added that the preparations for the World Championship in Shanghai in October will begin with a camp for men in Pune.

“Since the women’s camps in Odisha and Kerala were shut because of the pandemic, we are focussing only on the men’s team for the Worlds.

“Essentially, the focus will be on the Asian Games next year. We are looking at the Worlds as an exposure event though they will prepare to win a medal there too.