Marathon runner Kavita Raut on Wednesday sought to steer clear of the O.P. Jaisha controversy, asserting that there was enough water for her during the gruelling marathon event in the Rio Olympics.
Jaisha, the second Indian participant in the marathon, stoked a controversy by alleging that Athletics Federation of India officials did not arrange for water and energy drinks during the race under scorching heat, a claim denied by the AFI.
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Kavita, who finished 120th in the race with a timing of 2 hrs 59 minutes and 29 seconds, said she has no complaints against the Indian officials.
“I don’t want to be involved in the Jaisha issue. I don’t want to speak about what she said or complained. I will speak for myself and as far as I am concerned I have no issues. It was a normal race for me though I felt thirsty along the way as the race was run under scorching heat,” Kavita said from her home in Maharashtra.
“I don’t know at what intervals the water stations were kept. But there were water stations and I felt water, kept along the course of the race, was enough and that was why I completed the race without any problem,” she added.
Kavita made it clear that she was asked by AFI officials if she would need personalised drinks during the race.
“Yes, I was asked at the team assembly. AFI Secretary (C.K. Valson), chief coach (Bahadur Singh) and deputy chief coach (Radhakrishnan Nair) came to me a day before the race and asked if I needed the personalised drinks. But I said I am not using the personalised drinks,” said Kavita who qualified for Rio Olympics during the South Asian Games in Guwahati earlier this year.
“I am not in the habit of using these personalised drinks. It does not suit me.” “When I train also I don’t use personalised drinks and so it is about habit and I use only normal water.”
Asked if the Indian officials were available after Jaisha fainted at the finish line, Kavita said, “I finished the race 10 minutes after Jaisha. After I completed my race, I went to the changing room and saw Jaisha’s kit bag lying there. I had doubts thinking whether Jaisha had fallen down after the race.
“Me and Sudha Singh (who competed in the 3000m steeplechase event) started searching for Jaisha. We then met the chief coach and deputy chief coach and got to know that Jaisha had been given medical treatment and Nikolai (Jaisha’s personal coach) was inside the medical station with her. Sudha and I also accompanied Jaisha to the Games Village polyclinic in an ambulance along with the coaches.
Asked if she had come across empty refreshment stations of India as has been claimed by Jaisha, she said, “I was not going to use the personalised drinks and I was going to run only by using normal water.
“So, I did not give any attention or thought whether there were such stations specifically meant for India or not. I did not see them.”
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