PT Usha slams national athletics organisers

Athletics legend P.T. Usha Monday slammed the organisers of the ongoing 54th National Open Athletics Championships for the inappropriate timing of the event and also for the poor facilities for the athletes to perform in.

Usha complained that the scheduling of the tournament was poor as it was held after big events like the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

"This event should have been held before the two mega events. It would have proved to be a great warm-up event and given the athletes a lot of confidence. But hosting it now serves no purpose," Usha said.

The 'Payyoli Express' also complained about the positioning of the timer being erroneous as well as dumping of mud on the race track.

"The timer should be kept at a proper place. Athletes can't see the timer while running. Usually it is kept on the left of the track so it is convenient for the athletes to keep a tab on their timing. But here the timer was kept on the right side of the track making it harder for the runners," she said.

The 50-year-old also blasted the organisers for leaving a pile of mud on the running track of the Jawaharlal Stadium.

"On the first track, there was a pile of mud that was kept during the commencement of events. It provided a great deal of difficulty for the runners. That is why everyone avoided running on the first track. The organisers must have done some work with the mud and then accumulated it and dumped it on the first track," the Padma Shri recipient said.