He's 77, asthmatic, dope-tainted and charges a bomb: But India still re-hires this coach for Rio 2016

In the 2011 doping scandal — the one which resulted in six Indian athletes, including three members of the women’s 4x400m relay team being banned - the Justice Mukul Mudgal panel slammed then coach Yuri Ogorodnik after they found handwritten doping charts in his room at the National Institure of Sports in Patiala. Four years later, the 77-year-old coach is set to return to train India’s athletes for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. [caption id=“attachment_2278968” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational Image. AFP[/caption] His age isn’t the only concern. He is also asthmatic and has heart problems, according to a Hindustan Times report. And India will be paying more than Rs 4 lakhs a month for his services The newspaper’s sources told them that the Indian 4x400m relay team which won gold at the Asian Games in Incheon were getting ‘micro-dosing’ advice from Ogorodnik. However, all the members passed the dope test — and the prospect of having the Ukrainian return as coach was too much for the Sports Ministry to resist this time. Despite his controversial baggage, Ogorodnik is highly regarded by administrators. That the Sports Ministry threw the rulebook out to rubberstamp his re-hiring is enough proof of that. “This time, the file was cleared by the minister (Sarbananda Sonowal),” the report quotes sports secretary Ajit Sharan as saying. “We believe he is the best coach available and that is what the athletes have also been telling us. The athletes have trained under him for a long time and they are all comfortable with him,” AFI secretary C.K. Valson told The Hindu in May. The Sports Authority of India meanwhile, were reportedly wary of Ogorodnik’s medical condition. He is seven years older than the age limit for coaches in the country — and SAI were reluctant of covering his medical expenses under their general insurance. However, a SAI official told The Hindu that they didn’t want to be blamed for denying the country a chance of an Olympic medal.’ The Hindustan Times report can be found on page 17 of the newspaper (4 June).