New panel takes stock of UT sports infra
Sorabh Kumar Arora, director, sports, Chandigarh administration, put forth a presentation on major initiatives of the department. He informed the meeting that proposals for an international-level multi-purpose hall, Olympic standard swimming pool, and girls' hostel had been initiated, with tenders floated to finalise a consultant for design preparation. The facilities will be opened on Aug 18.
The committee was told that the Sector 39 swimming pool will be converted into an all-weather swimming pool by Oct 31. Upgradation works are also under way at the basketball hall, sports complex, Sector 42; hockey stadiums in sectors 42 and 18; and Lake Sports Complex to meet national standards for hosting major competitions.
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Hindustan Times
22 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Vece Paes: A Man for All Seasons
Siliguri: They say, 'Never meet your heroes.' Those people obviously never enjoyed the calming, charming, chuckle-a-minute company of Vece Paes, the winner of an Olympic bronze medal with the India hockey team in Munich 1972 and a doctor of medicine with a pioneering role in the anti-doping initiatives of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), who died in his adopted city of Kolkata on Thursday at the age of eighty. Dr. Vece Paes after a practice session with his son and tennis player Leander Paes at the SDAT Stadium, Chennai on Thursday. (HT) Except that, leaving aside fans of a certain vintage, of course, Dr. Paes was better known as father to a hero. Indian tennis legend Leander Paes tore up the Davis Cup arena with a series of rousing victories against fancied opponents in the 1990s and emulated his father by winning an Olympic bronze medal in singles in Atlanta 1996. The paternal bond Vece Paes shared with Leander Paes ran deep and had its roots in his own, more complicated relationship with his father. A Goan Christian, and not an Anglo-Indian as many mistook him to be, Vece Paes was born to Peter Paes of Assolna and Marlaque, who belonged to the D'Costa family of Velim. Brought up by the D'Costas since the age of four, after a sojourn in Tanzania in East Africa where Peter Paes worked as a doctor, Vece Paes followed the family's tradition and went to Bangalore to study at St. Joseph's. There, he made full use of the school's insistence on achieving excellence in both academics and sports, including cricket, football and hockey. He remembered meeting Richard Allen, the winner of three Olympic gold medals with the hockey teams from pre-independence India who was the games master at Bishop's Cotton College in Bangalore, at an inter-school match. 'We beat them hollow in hockey,' Vece Paes recalled. As someone who always believed sporting excellence comes from hours of practice, Vece Paes knew the importance of those formative years. However, Vece Paes's hockey career bloomed only after he arrived in Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1963 to study at St. Xavier's as part of his preparation to pursue medicine, another family tradition that saw his father as well as three of his siblings becoming doctors. Calcutta was a city where the sporting ethos of the British still flourished. Vece Paes fondly remembered the crucial role played by Father Cecil K. Leeming, his teacher at St. Xavier's, in helping him pursue hockey, a plan vehemently opposed by Peter Paes who thought it would be a hindrance to his son' career in medicine. Gurbux Singh, another proud Kolkatan who won an Olympic gold in Tokyo 1964 and an Olympic bronze in Mexico 1968, remembers Vece Paes joining the East Bengal hockey team in 1966 while still at St Xavier's. 'Later, we both shifted to Mohun Bagan, where we played together for thirteen years, winning nine Beighton Cups and nine Calcutta League titles,' Singh said. A supremely fit athlete, Vece Paes mostly played as centre half. He was sound in defence and quick to attack. He swiftly made it to the Bengal state team and then made his India debut at a tournament in Hamburg in 1966 under the captaincy of Gurbux Singh. He was unlucky to miss out on selection for the 1968 Mexico Olympics where Gurbux Singh was the joint-captain. 'That's why Gurbux is always nice to me,' Vece Paes would joke. He did make it to the India team sent to the 1972 Olympics, thereby fulfilling a long-standing dream. By then, Vece Paes had joined NRS Medical College and qualified as a doctor, specialising in general surgery. Calcutta's traffic sergeants must have gotten weary of the sight of the young doctor tearing up the city streets in his scooter, and for a short while in a battered ambassador, in a bid to reach the Maidan in time for Mohun Bagan's matches in the afternoon. 'He would be tying up his shoelaces and putting on his shorts while we started with ten men,' Singh said. Vece Paes married former India basketball player Jennifer Dutton, a great-granddaughter of the famous Bengali poet Michael Madhusudan Dutt, and they had three children, Jacqueline, Maria and Leander. Juggling the responsibilities of a young family, a fledgling career in medicine and the requirements of top-drawer hockey proved impossible after a while. 'I had a short career as an international hockey player,' Vece Paes was happy to concede. Vece Paes and Jennifer also separated while relatively young and Vece Paes lived with his partner, Juliana Van Steensel. The young Leander Paes was crazy about football. 'He would literally take the muddy football to bed at night,' Vece Paes recalled. However, frequent seizures at the age of six meant Leander Paes was told to avoid full-contact sport. He took up tennis later. According to Vece Paes, that was why his son hit the tennis ball funny, as famously noted by Andre Agassi in his autobiography, Open: he never had the 10,000 hours of practice at tennis that one requires to master a skill. As Leander Paes's tennis career took off, Vece Paes took to accompanying him whenever he could and it was then that he decided to shift towards sports medicine. Vece Paes went on to play a crucial role in setting up BCCI's anti-doping programme and doing the same in other countries under the Asian Cricket Council as part of former BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya's grand plans of globalising the sport. Parkinson's slowed Vece Paes down in his last years, but could never dampen his spirit. He was certainly a hero and one who was worth meeting, again and again. The sun will shine a little less bright over Kolkata tomorrow.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Dr Vece Paes obituary: The big-hearted all-rounder of Indian sports
At a corporate hockey tournament in Kolkata once, young Jehan Mehta witnessed what multitudes resided in Dr Vece Paes. Playing on the opposing team that day, first the 1972 Olympic bronze medallist neutralised Jehan with a cheeky stick-tap on his carpals when the youngster got a little too close in man-to-man marking. Then the good doctor stitched up the split webbing he had himself caused. While at it, he advised (coached) Jehan on clever trapping and dispossessing a rival – like himself – off the ball and muscling into the D. And when Jehan scored 3 goals in the finals dipping into the said advice, Dr Vece Paes was deliriously proud, picking the tab on beverages. While an Olympian hockey star, it was his post-playing stint, where he forsook what could have been a lucrative medical practice, and set about putting the broader framework of sports science in Indian sport, that set Dr Vece apart from the several decorated legends of his sport. 'Can never forget how he would take Leander along on his Vespa scooter around different Calcutta clubs, to get him practice on all kinds of surfaces. He made Leander. At times, he tended as physio and masseuse to 6-7 athletes on the same day, because he never said No to any sportsperson. And all this by leaving his reputation behind,' Mehta adds. The former BCCI head Jagmohan Dalmiya was fascinated by Dr Paes's intellect and energy, and invited him to deal with one massive headache – age-fraud. 'Those days, BCCI had an immense problem of overage players, and bone tests would be inconclusive,' recalls Prof Ratnakar Shetty, former secretary of the board. While age-fraud is far from being wiped out, Dr Paes was brought in to set up a literal skeletal structure of dealing with the menace. He would bring in the Tanner Whitehouse-3 (TW-3) Test, but always insist on the rider – a limitation of science. 'He explained that TW-3 was reliable for verification till age 16, but not beyond. Still 5-6 high courts across India noted their gratitude to him for clearing out the fog around these cases and laying out a process for a level-playing field,' Shetty recalls. Things got tricky once when a father of a pair of twins approached Delhi HC, after one brother cleared the TW-3 test, and another failed it. 'An appeal went to the SC division bench on how one can be eligible and the other not if they are twins! But Dr Paes drafted a reply that was so good, the court arrived at a solution from this tricky matter,' Shetty says, adding, 'We were clueless in cricket, but he never tired of answering queries.' Setting up an anti-doping framework was another almighty challenge for a board that had been archaic for years. From drafting the anti-doping code to bringing in Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Rahul Dravid to shoot videos for messaging against drug use in educational videos, Dr Paes would lug the board out of its ancient ways. 'Some cases were genuine. But even for those that were slapped with sanctions, Dr Paes ensured the young athletes weren't scarred. He empathised as an athlete, talked them through it all,' Shetty recalls. Vece Paes, the hockey player, always remained in the shadow of India's finest centre-half Ajitpal Singh, though he was a worthy understudy in an era without rolling substitutions. 'He always carried a dignity even when he was not getting chances with only one spot available. He was a qualified doctor and an excellent centre half…his interception and parallel and through passes in attack were as good as anybody,' says retd Brigadier Harcharan Singh, member of the 1972 team. A regular with the Mohun Bagan and Bengal teams of Gurbux Singh and Inam-ur Rehman, he would study for medicine at Patiala national camps while with the team, and became go-to for all sports medicine queries even at Munich. 'He was a team player … years later when Leander won 1996 Atlanta bronze, the whole 1972 team were glad that a son of one of our members had become an Olympics medallist,' he added. A day after Leander's medal, Dr Paes would invite the Indian boxing team of Gurcharan, Lakha and Devendra Thapa to meet the medallist. 'I'll always remember Dr Paes for raising a player as dedicated and disciplined as Leander who gave it all,' recalls boxing coach GS Sandhu. Elsewhere in rugby, he played the bridge between perennially passionate rivals. In Kolkata, the La Martiniere Old Boys (LMOB) played with a perennial siege mentality of the whole world being against them, like Manchester United. 'Doc, playing for CCFC against LMOB, understood this chip on the shoulder, took it in his stride, and played with caution though he had height, strength, and weight to rampage. Also gracious, and the first person to buy everyone drinks,' Mehta recalls. When the rugby behemoths of Bombay and Calcutta came together to form the federation in 1996, the unanimous choice was Dr Paes as president. On the first trip of the Indian rugby team abroad in 1998, all the money gaps were plugged by Dr Paes dipping into Leander's account. In Thailand, he earned the tag 'joy guru.' 'He would spout wisdom on all sorts of things and became popular with young players! But the mischief was always within bounds,' Mehta recalls. Once when accompanying a hockey team to Singapore, the astroturf burnt shoe soles as Indians weren't wearing the right pairs of playing boots. 'Heat caused blisters and there was no money to buy new gear. He spoke to Leander, and they got shoes for the whole team,' Mehta recalls. But it was in 1996 at the All India rugby in a blistering game of Bombay Gymkhana vs CCFC that Dr Vece Paes left a lasting mark (and some sutures) on future captain Nasser Hussain. 'I must've been 16-17, and ended up with a cut on the back of my head. Dr Vece Paes took me aside, and there on the field, while I watched the match carry on, told me 'Son, this is going to hurt.' It sure did, there was no anaesthesia, and I was sitting there getting treatment from the President of the rugby federation! But now that I think of it, I fell in love with rugby right there, he let me watch the game, stitched me up as opposed to taking me to hospital, and I was back with my team in 30 minutes.' The doctor knew the minds and bodies of athletes, and it endeared him to legions across many sports. As an opponent he was tough, unsparing in fouling rivals, laughing it off after a warning that boomed, 'Rascal, now dekho saala.' As a doctor, he gently soothed away pains and fears.
News18
an hour ago
- News18
Michael Phelps Blasts USA Swimming Leadership As 'Poor' And 'Weak', Suggests Reforms
Michael Phelps suggested several reforms, including an independent review of USA Swimming's Board of Directors and its organisation. Michael Phelps has launched a fierce criticism of USA Swimming's leadership, with the 23-time Olympic gold medallist labelling the organisation as weak and calling for significant reforms following years of perceived decline. The 40-year-old American, the most decorated Olympian ever with 28 medals, expressed his concerns while admitting he may not want his four young sons to compete in swimming given the current state of the sport in the United States. Reflecting on his competitive career, Phelps conveyed his long-standing frustrations, noting that he often felt ignored, was 'told to be grateful for the chance to compete" and pressured to stay silent and maintain peace. 'First, I must be clear that I have the utmost respect for the U.S. swimmers that competed at the World Championships," Phelps, who retired in 2016, wrote in a detailed Instagram post. 'My criticism is in no way directed at them – I know how hard they work and how honoured they are to represent the U.S. National Team. My criticism targets the system, its leadership, and its failures. 'There have always been cracks in the system but in the last nine years, I've seen those cracks grow." Phelps contrasted the U.S. swim team's success at the Rio Olympics in 2016, where they secured 33 medals, with their performance at the Paris Games last year, which resulted in their lowest medal count in the pool (28) since the 2004 Games in Athens. Pool Leadership Phelps also disclosed that he sent a letter to USA Swimming earlier this year detailing his 'frustrations with the current state of the sport," which was shared with the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee to highlight his concerns. He mentioned having support from former Olympic medallists, world record holders, coaches, and both current and former staff members but noted that the letter 'seemed to fall on deaf ears." 'I've asked myself what's changed in our sport and the answer is clear … this isn't on the athletes as they continue to do the best they can with what they've been given. This is on the leadership of USA Swimming," he added. 'Poor leadership trickles down and can impact an organisation at every level. 'Money is a factor. But poor operational controls and weak leadership are a cornerstone of the sport's problems." Phelps suggested several reforms, including an independent review of USA Swimming's Board of Directors and its organisation, enhancing athlete services, and bolstering grassroots efforts to reverse membership decline and promote growth. 'I offer up my service to be a resource in these proposed initial steps and I am hopeful that the USA Swimming community will accept my offer," he added. Earlier this month, Phelps, alongside six-time Olympic champion Ryan Lochte, expressed their disappointment after the U.S. team's performance at the World Championships in Singapore. Lochte shared an image on social media of a tombstone with the inscription: 'In loving memory of United States Swimming. They set the bar high — until they stopped reaching for it." Lochte added a caption mentioning the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, saying: 'Call it a funeral or call it a fresh start. We've got 3 years." Phelps reposted Lochte's image and commented: 'Is this the wake-up call USA swimming needed?" Despite early challenges in Singapore, the U.S. finished at the top of the medals table with nine golds and 29 medals overall. With Inputs From Reuters About the Author Sports Desk A team of reporters, writers and editors brings you live updates, breaking news, opinions and photos from the wide world of sport. Follow @News18Sports Click here to add News18 as your preferred news source on Google. News18 Sports brings you the latest updates, live commentary, and highlights from cricket, football, tennis, badmintion, wwe and more. Catch breaking news, live scores, and in-depth coverage. Also Download the News18 App to stay updated! tags : michael phelps ryan lochte swimming USA Swimming view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: August 14, 2025, 19:14 IST News sports Michael Phelps Blasts USA Swimming Leadership As 'Poor' And 'Weak', Suggests Reforms Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
