Sports Ministry adds seven former athletes, including Anju Bobby George, Bhaichung Bhutia in Mission Olympics Cell (MOC) 

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has doubled the number of former athletes as core members of the revamped Mission Olympic Cell (MOC). The move is aimed to make it more athlete-centric than it has been so far.

MOC drives India’s Olympics Preparation through the Target Olympics Podium (TOPS) initiative of the Sports Ministry. This has been done to accelerate India’s progress on the global sports stage.

Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur said the decision was driven by the experience gained in the last Olympic cycle. In a statement, he said:

“The inputs by former athletes in the incumbent MOC played a significant role in supporting the training and competition of the athletes who competed in the Tokyo Olympics 2020 and won seven medals and 19 in the Tokyo Paralympics."

The new MOC will now include former Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia, World Athletics Championships long jump medallist Anju Bobby George and former Indian hockey captain Sardara Singh.

The panel also includes rifle shooting legend Anjali Bhagwat, former hockey captain and CEO of Olympic Gold Quest Viren Rasquinha, table tennis star Monalisa Mehta and badminton ace Trupti Murgunde.

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Anju Bobby George won the Woman of the Year Award at the World Athletics Awards on Wednesday.

Anju Bobby George is a constant voice for gender equality in her role as Senior Vice President of the Indian Athletics Federation. The athlete also mentors schoolgirls for future leadership positions within the sport.

Administrators to be a part of MOC

Olympian sailor and sports science specialist Dr. Malav Shroff will continue to be in the MOC.

President of the Athletics Federation of India, Adile Sumeriwala, and President Athletic Federation of India and CEO TOPS Cmde Pushpendra Garg are other former players in the MOC.

Arjun Munda, Cabinet Minister, alongside Ajay Singh and Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh by virtue of being President of Archery Association of India, Boxing Federation of India and Wrestling Federation of India, respectively, will also be part of the MOC.

The MOC will be Chaired by the Director General, Sports Authority of India.