Indian Express: India’s voice in IOC— Ashwini Kumar — remembered as sport administration giant

Ashwini Kumar was India’s representative in the IOC in 1973 and was member of its executive board for two terms.

Written by Mihir Vasavda, New Delhi October 22, 2015

On a chilly Sunday morning back in the 1970s, Ashwini Kumar entered an akhara in Delhi in a plain khaki shirt. He was impressed by a wrestler he had seen in a local tournament, and wanted to have a closer look at him. After just 10 minutes, Kumar had seen enough of him. The then chief of Border Security Force walked up to the wrestler and is believed to have told him: “I’ll arrange a try-out with one of my wrestlers. If you beat him, then you’ll get a job with BSF and will fight for us. Also, your designation will be higher than the opponent you beat.”

It’s this style of leadership that endeared him to most athletes while antagonised many, who saw it as arbitrary and authoritative. Few Indian sports administrators divide the opinion as Kumar has. Hailed by many as an irreplaceable police officer with ultimate love for hockey, the controversial yet highly influential Kumar passed away earlier this week aged 94. His death united a perennially divided Indian sports fraternity, which describes him as a ‘legend’ of Indian sport administration.

“What he did for sport in Punjab and those areas, especially when he was with BSF and Punjab Police, was tremendous. He did a good job in encouraging sports,” says former India shooter and IOC member Randhir Singh. “His main contribution, however, surrounds hockey. He gave a great deal of patronage for the sport, which was rare in those days. He encouraged every person who had potential to do well. He would give them a job immediately. That was a big thing that then. No administrator promoted sport the way he did.”

Despite his tough exterior, sportsperson describe him as a kind and sensitive man, who would go out of the way to assist the athletes. Randhir describes him as a ‘shaukeen’ person. “He enjoyed his life. He liked music, poetry and also sponsored the Harballabh music festival in Jalandhar every year,” Randhir adds.

Before Randhir, Kumar was India’s representative in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1973 and was member of its executive board for two terms – from 1980 to 1987 and 1992 to 1996. He was also the only Indian to be elected the vice-president of IOC, serving from 1983 to 1987, apart from being a part of multiple IOC commissions. He became the international governing body’s honorary member in 2000 and received Olympic Order of Merit in 2002.

His influence within the IOC was evident when, more than a decade after he stopped participating actively, he played an influential role in restoring India’s Olympic status after the country was suspended three years ago. “It was tough to keep him away. When we were suspended by IOC, Ashwini spoke to his friends at the IOC and ensured the suspension did not last long,” says IOA life president Vijay Kumar Malhotra.

Hockey, first love
Malhotra and Kumar go back a long way. The duo held crucial positions in the 1982 Asian Games organising committee and oversaw the preparations until then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi stepped in. But his first love always remained hockey – he even nicknamed Rohini, his first born, hockey. Kumar was the IHF president for 16 years and vice president of the International Hockey Federation for more than 15 years. He also headed the Indian hockey delegation at the 1964 and 1968 Olympics.

Former India hockey captain Ajitpal Singh says Kumar was instrumental in shaping several careers, providing job security to players as well as encouraging them to play the sport without any fears. “I played when he was the president of IHF. He was also DG of BSF, where I worked. Whatever I have learnt on hockey field, discipline and dedication was also under him. He has made many Olympians, who would vouch for this. He shaped many careers,” Ajitpal says. “His heart was only for players. He was so kind; if any problem or any issue arose, he would deal with it himself. When he was the hockey boss, India never came without a medal. Present day, we are nowhere near that.”
He courted several controversies as well. It is alleged that Indian hockey’s growth stunted during his regime as the head and he was also accused of favouring players from Punjab. But his contemporaries deny these claims. “If you sit in high positions, you have to take decisions and sometimes you have to be strict in doing things. But it would be wrong to label it as autocratic. He carried people with him and they were very fond of him too. And he never told players just because you come from Punjab, you’ll play for India. He never did such things,” Randhir says.

Kumar had been unwell for quite some time. During the Vancouver Winter Games in 2010, he fractured his hip bone, which restricted his movements considerably. The massive turnout at his cremation on Tuesday afternoon highlighted the popularity he enjoyed. “He touched many lives. Few Indian administrators have been so influential. He is a legend of our times,” Malhotra says.