Masters nationals in India are all over the map — and calendar

WMA President Stan Perkins (left)WMA President Stan Perkins (left) makes not infrequent trips to India for — you tell us.

Last month, the 38th National Masters Athletics Championships of India were held at Mangala Stadium in Mangaluru. On Wednesday, it was reported</a> that the 40th National Masters Athletics Championships 2019 will be held in Manipur “per a statement issued by Masters Athletics Federation of India (MAFI).” Say what? How did a year get skipped? Don’t ask. And don’t tell WMA that the 39th National Masters Athletics Championships were held at Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru, in late February. The mess of competing national governing bodies continues unabated in 1.3 Billion Land. Even though a year ago I reported how India’s version of USATF was taking over masters track, we still see such nonsense as: “The above [February] championship will be one of the selection criteria to select the Indian Masters Athletics Team for the forthcoming World Masters Athletics Championships which is scheduled to be held in Malaga, Spain, during September 2018.” Yeah, right. (WMA doesn’t cotton qualifying meets.) So who’s in charge? Only Vishnu knows.

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About the Author

Ken Stone
Ken has followed track as an athlete, writer and webmaster since the late 1960s, and saw most sessions of track and field at the 1984 Los Angeles and 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He also attended the 1988, 1992, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Trials. He worked for 10 newspapers and now reports for Times of San Diego. Write him at TrackCEO@aol.com or kens@timesofandiego.com. Story tips always welcome!

1 Comment on "Masters nationals in India are all over the map — and calendar"

  1. Hi, please select athletis who can qualify for the Asian Master meet or world masters meet.the association is more interested in arranging package tour than encourage master Athletis.

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