Mangalore: Usha’s wards could train at Mangala Stadium

 

Mangalore, 15 Jul 2013: Upcoming athletes and sportspersons must have the wherewithal to succeed just as it is imperative on part of the state to provide them with basic sports infrastructure to succeed, said P T Usha. In the city to inspect the newly-laid synthetic track at Mangala Stadium here on Sunday, Usha promised to bring her academy students to the stadium here. These trainees are presently undergoing training at Infosys’ synthetic track at their Mysore stadium.

 

Espousing the need for every district to have a synthetic track, Usha aka Payyoli Express who blazed the track in her heydays said the nation can have a great talent pool of athletes if they make the best use of the facilities created for them. Noting that Indian athletes still have a long way to go to make their mark in the world of athletics, Usha expressed her appreciation for the manner in which the track laid at Mangala Stadium has shaped up.

 

On the crisis that befell Ashwini Chidananda Shetty Akkunje, an athlete who found herself in the vortex of performance enhancing drug abuse, Usha opined out that individuals have to learn from their small mistakes and not lose heart even when nothing seems to be going one’s way. Incidentally, Ashwini’s two-year ban for a doping offence committed in 2011 ended on July 3, the first day of 20th edition of the recently concluded Asian Championship.

 

Deputy commissioner N Prakash assured Usha that the district administration will take up the remaining minor works pertaining to the synthetic track at the earliest. After the completion of the minor, inspectors appointed by the International Association of Athletes Federation (IAAF) will inspect the track for certification.

 

Former chief minister Jagadish Shettar inaugurated the Rs. 3.15-crore synthetic track on March 19.