Interview with Shiva Keshavan: "Financial problems are forcing me to make plans of quitting luge"

Shiva Keshavan in action during the Sochi 2014

Back in 1998, a 16-year old Shiva Keshavan pulled off the unthinkable as he became India’s first ever winter Olympian at a time when the country didn’t even know about luge’s existence. Since then, it has been a journey which has seen him travel across the world and compete against the best with little or no infrastructure available back home.

However, the 33-year old’s career is at a crossroads now as he is contemplating quitting the sport that he has grown up pursuing.

It was only recently that Keshavan started hitting his best form. Back to back gold medals at the Asian Championships and consolidating the continent’s speed record are a few of his recent achievements.

The reason for him thinking about leaving luge is not because he has come close to his potential retirement age – far from that. It is Keshavan’s constant and systematic battle with lack of finances and infrastructure throughout his career that has manifested itself to its peak now.

With little or no help from the Sports Ministry, he is now barely left with any sponsorship or finances to fund his winter sports dream.

With nine World Cup events scheduled between November 2015 and February 2016, Keshavan might not have enough money to travel for even a couple of them. The lack of financial backing has left a massive cloud of doubt over his 2018 Winter Olympic participation too.

After submitting his proposal for sponsorship last year to the Sports Ministry, Keshavan is yet to receive a single penny from the government.

From putting Indian winter sport on the world map to single-handedly bearing the country’s flag at the Winter Olympics, Keshavan’s plight is our failure. We sat down with the prolific luger to talk about his current financial plight and the road ahead.

Q. How has the Indian government backed you over the past few months, in terms of funding and support?

My applications to the Ministry under former Minister Jitender Singh resulted in my expenses for the 2013-14 season being partly reimbursed by the Ministry. As a consequence, I qualified for the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia and also won the Silver Medal at the Asian Championship that winter. At the same time, I was also assured of continued support in the future.

Based on my performance and earlier assurance by the Ministry, in June 2014, I approached the current Sports Minister with an application for Financial support along with the training and competition calendar until the 2018 Olympic Games in Korea.

I requested for a personal coach, an essential requirement, as well as the expenses for training and competing in the World Cup Circuit. Unfortunately for me, I was not given any assistance and I was left hanging without even a clear yes or no answer, only assurances that ‘it will be done’.

I once again approached the Hon’ble Sports Minister in March 2015 with a plea to the government to at least provide me a personal coach. I was again assured that it will be done, but every time I enquire about the status, I am asked to wait for a little longer. This has been going on since 4 months and I am unable to make any training plans without an answer from the Ministry.

Q. Has the new Sports Ministry done enough to support winter sports in the country?

Unfortunately, I have come to conclude that the new Sports Ministry is not giving Winter sports its due. In fact, based on foreign visits and studies conducted to Winter Sports training centers, the previous Ministry had started giving its due to Winter Sports. I find that the support to winter sport has totally stopped under the new ministry.

Q. When I interviewed you last, you spoke about several promises made to you about winter sports growth. Have they been fulfilled yet?

I was very hopeful that the new government headed by Prime Minister Modi would be more proactive in sport development as well as improve the bureaucratic delays, and improve transparency and accountability.

However in the case of winter sports, it seems my hopes were unfounded as the situation is getting worse. I met with the current Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal since he took over the Office and he did assure me of support.

I have submitted my proposal to him twice and been assured that it will be looked at in a positive light. Ironically for one year now, I have not heard from them since, despite repeatedly approaching them.

Q. How are your preparations going for the 2018 Winter Olympics?

At the moment, my coach, Duncan Kennedy, and me are working on the new sled that we shall use in the coming winter based on the prototype we had developed so far. I am preparing for the international circuit which starts in September.

There are nine World Cups editions between November 2015 and February 2016, The World Championships are in Germany in Jan 2016 and the Asian Championship in Japan are in December 2015. I am unsure about which of these events or training I will be able to attend since I have no clarity from the government regarding budget.

Q. With the high expenses of your sport, is it difficult to make ends meet?

For an athlete that dedicates all of his time to train, it will be very difficult to find a regular job and earn a regular livelihood. That is why the government should maintain athletes that are representing our country internationally. I have dedicated 20 years of my life to serving my country and in order to make ends meet, I have applied for various government jobs that are supposed to be available to athletes. So far I have not received any support to improve my situation.

Q. What are your plans for the upcoming year?

My main goal is to win the gold at the Asian Championship this year. I also aim to enter the top 10 at the Nations Cup since my best result last year was 15th.

Q. What is the state of sponsorship in Indian winter sports right now?

There have been a number of companies that has supported me over the years through sponsorships. This goes to show that it is definitely possible to find sponsorships in sports other than cricket as more and more companies are understanding the advantages of investing in various sports.

I believe that if the government would pay for the expenses of its athletes, corporate sponsorship would become a great way for athletes to earn a living. However corporate sponsorship cannot take the place of government support

Q. Do you regret not taking up Italian citizenship, considering the current state of winter sports in India?

My mission to develop winter sports in India would be impossible if I were to leave my country. I still have the same mission although I have realized that our government seems to care nothing about its athletes, much less about developing sports in rural areas.

Q. What is the total amount of sponsorship you need annually?

My biggest need is my coach salary, which is 4000 US dollars per month. Apart from that, the equipment, training, travel and competition costs are approximately INR 50 lakhs per year.

Q. What’s next for Shiva Keshavan?

I have planned to compete for India at the Olympic Games in Korea in 2018. Towards that goal, I have tied up with 21 time World Champion and ex-Technical Director of the USA Olympic Luge Team, Duncan Kennedy, for who I have been asking support from the Government.

The Korea Games will be a huge event in Asia, and it is essential for India to put up her best show. So far I am the only athlete who has consistently represented India through Official qualification.

For the next Games, I want to bring India on a level playing field and be able to put up my best performance, which is only possible if I am given sustained support, and provided essential requirements like a Coach. Over the next 3 years, I aim to improve my World ranking, which will only be possible by participating in as many World Cups as can be possible.