A National Sports Authority; a New Year Resolution!
View(s):No less a sports personage than the NOC chief has advocated the establishment of a National Sports Authority (NSA) that he believes will negate the vagaries of political reversals and give Sri Lanka sports, the semblance of a long term imagination, rather than the quick fixes one has seen over the years! The Sports Minister, a top sportsman in his own right, has set the tone for far reaching changes and one that has gained quick resonance, is the National Sports Council (NSC) headed by one of Sri Lanka’s illustrious sports icons, Mahela Jayawardene himself. But one wonders about the adequacy of these institutions manipulated time and again, for minor political gains, sacrificing the talent and valour of our budding sportsmen and sportswomen.
What is clear is that you cannot put an F1 engine in a horse driven Oldsmobile! It might behove the Hon. Minister to take another close look at the structure that resides within the MOS (Ministry of Sports) and the archaic approach that is relentlessly pursued day after day; untimely meetings, multiple mails, unrealistic deadlines, repetitive demands and disconnected plans, all are a daily grind in an edifice that adorns a prime location in Colombo’s exalted neighbourhood. So all the good work of the NSC and the many divisions within MOS that encompasses Administration, Training, Medical, etc., are all driven by good intentions and little else. This column has for long envisioned a Web Portal that will bring about a major transformational visibility, that will bring the public into the sports domain and expose the negligence and limitations of the National Sports Associations (NSA). For someone encouraging change, the NOC boss must also take a critical look at his own organisation and ask the question, whether it is geared to step into the breach and be a catalyst for a far reaching modern infrastructure that he is promoting for the sports concourse of our nation!
There is fortunately a willingness from many quarters to make this dream, a reality! The Sports Minister himself leads the charge and with a military backed regiment at his command, the first steps are evident and adroitly fashioned by NSC and its crew! So, what is fundamental is to see how all the corridors of power at the MOS can merge to deal with policy issues leaving the functional aspects to those who are well equipped to implement them. That restructuring is a colossal need of the hour and then a semblance of what a NSA would be, can begin to take shape!
The NSC is articulating a provincial sports distribution plan with centres of excellence that will take these disciplines to the masses. At the apex level, a High Performance Unit (HPU) is taking shape and a precise focus on medal prospects at international competitions, such as the Commonwealth, Asian and Olympic Games is high on the agenda. Promising athletes are being identified and a cohesive support system is being put in place. These are all major developments but there is no doubt much more needs to be done and thus accountability at all levels must be emphasized! No more can bandwagons be created for people who have nothing else in mind but to exploit the sport that has nourished their own machinations for long periods of time.
Football is a classic case in existence. Now the media is trumpeting the panacea of a Super League that it is claimed will uplift a sport that has remained in the doldrums for decades. Suddenly, it is talking of revenues in millions and of a business in itself. Will the MOS and the FFSL (Football Federation of Sri Lanka) first explain to all and sundry what happened to a fraud estimated at Rs.30M just a few years ago where its own accountant is accused of merely walking away with the money! So, where is the accountability which one seeks! The MOS and NSC must take cognisance of such diabolical trysts that mar the sports firmament and hold these administrators responsible, however powerful they may be.
Otherwise, the resolutions that will fashion our sports future will be lost in another plethora of promises and disenchantment. We are living in a new normal which brings in its aftermath new challenges and infinite realities. COVID-19 is not going to just go away as we learn on the airwaves each day. So, we must learn how to conduct sports without compromising on the health imperatives of a nation. The MOS must take the lead in such an exercise and come up with a proactive model that does not merely pass the buck to the MOH (Ministry of Health). National sports can lift a despondent nation from its bootlaces, but bold strides are taken by strong minds and able bodies! A NSA is one such way, but to take that plunge, we must first put our house in order or dare to turn it inside out this New Year – 2021.