Indian sports set for major overhaul under sports minister Rathore

'Every sport will now have CEOs and High Performance Managers. These managers will have to ensure that the players get better training for each sport and also which tournament they should take part in.'

Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Friday announced a cash award of Rs 6.70 lakh for all the gold medal winners at the recently concluded Youth Women's World Boxing Championships in Guwahati.

India's junior women pugilists won five gold and two bronze medals emerging as team champions during the week-long event in Guwahati.

"You girls have changed the old thinking that girls can only take part in some games. This thinking should end, anyone can take part in anything," Rathore had words of encouragement for the youngsters during a felicitation ceremony organized by Boxing Federation of India (BFI) in New Delhi.

"I know how many problems you may have faced just to play, to train and that is why you all are an inspiration for the people of the country and the girls. Your stories need to be heard so that girls hear them and get inspired by them to play," Rathore said.

The Olympic silver medallist said that his ministry is working on revamping the current structure by appointing CEO's and High Performance Managers for each and every sport.

"We will change the Target Olympic Podium (TOP) scheme. Every sport will now have CEOs and High Performance Managers. These managers will have to ensure that the players get better training for each sport and also which tournament they should take part in," he added.

"The CEOs will look at the logistics part -- where the players need sport science, sports medicine. These two will be responsible for combining all of this," Rathore said.

Emphasising on the need for transparency in the system, Rathore appealed to all the sports federations to display fund details on their websites.

"I want the funding that the federations receive displayed in detail on their websites, where they got the money and where they spent it.

"The names of the selected players should also be put on their websites. This transparency is very necessary because each citizen, media, taxpayer should know where their money is being spent by the federation," Rathore said.