Asian Games rowing deepens as rowers complain to ministry about crew changes
The row over last-minute changes to Indian rowing crews at the Asian Games refuses to die down, with several men’s rowers considering a complaint to the sports ministry after the Games. Meanwhile, the Rowing Federation of India (RFI) advocated a realignment, he said the competition’s compressed schedule forced the changes.
As the rowing competitions began on Wednesday, at least two oarsmen said some members of the team were considering posting to the sports ministry after returning to India. The controversy involves 17 rowers and does not include the five female rowers.
“Our combinations changed at the last minute and that affected our performances. Suddenly you put another rower in the row just before the start of the event, how do you deal with that? It could be anything, say in pairs or fours where you need synchronization and rhythm etc,” one rower told PTI on condition of anonymity.
“Yes, we were helpless, we had to compete. But we were forced (to compete) in the way that the coaches and the federation wanted. We plan to file a complaint with the sports ministry after the games,” the player added.
RFI PREVENTS LAST MINUTE CHANGES IN ASIAN GAMES
RFI president Balaji Maradapa said the matter had been resolved, accusing the unnamed former coach of influencing young rowers.
“Most of these players are young and one former coach who has been involved in rowing for more than 20 years is influencing them. I told the players not to be influenced by a person sitting more than 10,000 km away,” said Maradapa.
“The matter is now settled. They competed today and will compete tomorrow.”
Maradapa said the rowing schedule was shortened from four days to two due to weather disturbances caused by Typhoon Dujuan and earlier heavy rain damage at the venue. The competition, which was originally scheduled to start on September 21st, started on September 23rd.
“Now it’s just two days and four practices. One player can’t row in the morning, then in the evening and the next day as well,” he said.
He said the changes were decided at a managers’ meeting the day before the competition began, with the team prioritizing workload management. RFI also relied on the advice of Australian rowing expert Antony Patterson, who spent seven years in Japan.
ARVIND, BALRAJ AMONG ROWERS MOVED BETWEEN EVENTS
The regrouping affected several established combinations. Arvind Singh, the 2022 Asian Games silver medallist, was moved from the single sculls to the quad scull, while Balraj Panwar moved from the quad bobsleigh to the single.
Originally selected for the men’s doubles, Saurav Kumar and Vipul Satish were replaced by Nitin Kumar and Jaswinder Singh. Saurav and Vipul were instead moved to the men’s four alongside Babu Lal Yadav and Yogesh Kumar.
Navdeep Singh and Kulwinder Singh were relegated from the double skull to the four to join Arvind and Jakar Khan. Backup rowers Ajay Tyagi, Jasmail Singh and Rohit have also been named for the starts.
India won five medals in rowing at the 2022 Asian Games – two silver and three bronze. On Wednesday, Indian rowers reached the A final, or medal round, in four events, but failed to make it to the medal rounds in three others.
With the competition underway, rowers focused on performance. However, the proposed complaint to the sports ministry means the row over last-minute crew changes could continue even after India’s Asian Games campaign ends.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
23 Sep 2026 20:05 IST