Young and aspiring athletes from Coimbatore have a good advantage over other district athletes, thanks to the awareness among parents.

According to the members of the Coimbatore Districts Athletics Association (CDAA), the amount of exposure that the city enjoys has paved way for the development of sports among the population of the texcity.

Dr. L.P. Thangavelu, the President of CDAA, said that apart from awareness among the parents, the city by itself has a good potential and added that the encouragement and incentives provided to the athletes also prove helpful. “We give special awards to winners of state-level competitions and the Nehru Stadium is an advantage to the athletes, thanks to the facilities it offers,” he said.

S. Jayachandran, one of the coaches at CDAA, said that the synthetic track built at a cost of Rs.8.5 crores at the Nehru Stadium will give an international training experience to the athletes. “Other districts only have mud tracks. The athletes will be running on synthetic tracks in competitions and training on this track will familiarize them with the conditions elsewhere,” he told Covai Post.

He further added that the coaches here are equipped to guide the athletes to greater glory. But, about the lack of performance from Indian athletes in the international arena, Jayachandran said that the build and features of foreign athletes give them an edge over Indian athletes. “Imagine tall Indians running as fast as Usain Bolt. It is hard to find such cases as most of the tall athletes lack stamina in this part of the world. Taller athletes in foreign countries tend to be more flexible and agile,” he added.

Jayachandran however believes that Indian athletes have the same potential as foreigners do, adding that a little extra effort would help them bring laurels to the nation.