Gymnastics coach Chertkov alleges arrest threat by SAI official

NEW DELHI: India's gymnastics coach Vladimir Chertkov, a Russia-born American, has claimed that a senior Sports Authority of India (SAI) official threatened him with 'dire consequences' for asking for an assistant coach to be sent to the ongoing national camp in London.
Chertkov told TOI on Tuesday from London that PC Kashyap, SAI executive director (teams), told him that the coach's contract had been cancelled."He told me I dare not come back to India otherwise he would have me arrested at the airport," the coach claimed.
Chertkov, who has helped Indian gymnasts finally make a mark on the international stage, is now unwilling to return to India. "I'm concerned about my well-being. Until I get a formal apology from the official, I'll not come back."
Kashyap, when contacted by TOI, refuted the charge. "No such call was made to him. Chertkov's contract does state that he needs to groom coaches but he can do that when he is in India. It takes lakhs of rupees to send coaches abroad and SAI did not feel the need for it."
Chertkov wanted some national coaches to attend this camp in preparation for 2012 Olympics. "It's a requirement in my contract that I try and help in the development of coaches. I'll be with the Indian team till next year only. All I want is that the gymnasts should be in good hands after I leave," Chertkov said.
The two-month long camp, which began on July 8, is going on at the Basildon Sporting Village in Essex, near London, with four athletes in attendance.
"National coaches like Praveen Sharma have been with the team for the last two years and know the players' needs well. But Kashyap has personal problems with him and so they have not sent him or anyone else," Chertkov, who is known for his frankness, said.
Kashyap, however, questioned Chertkov's competence as coach itself. "I don't think he is a coach. He is actually just a planner. In India, his assistants helped out the gymnasts which he is now missing in London.
"I've written to the Gymnastics Federation to send me an application requesting for a national coach to be send to London. Ashok Kumar Mishra is a senior coach and he will be sent for the last 15 days of the camp and then the World Cup in Belgium next month," he said.
This is not Chertkov's first confrontation with the authorities. He has been airing his views regarding "poor infrastructure for his wards and official apathy" frequently. "I've got plenty of support from the sports ministry who are thinking about progress. The behaviour of one SAI official is what is pushing us back," the coach claimed, pointing fingers at Kashyap.
Indian gymnasts have made considerable progress under Chertkov with Ashish Kumar winning the historic silver and bronze medals in the Commonwealth Games last year followed by another bronze in the Asiad. The tug-of-war between Chertkov and SAI will certainly dent the prospects of the gymnasts.