Chennai: The 53-member Indian athletic contingent, of which 10 are from Tamil Nadu, part of the World School Games in Turkey, is safe in a “well-guarded” sports village at Trabzon after an attempted military coup in the 'Sickman of Europe' last night.
The news of coup had triggered a panic situation among parents of the teenagers in the state. C. Ajith Kumar, who bagged bronze medal in the 100m category on Thursday, told this newspaper that there was nothing to worry and that athletes were instructed not to venture outside.
“We got to know about the situation here early morning on Saturday. We are asked to stay put in our rooms. We will be heading to the track in a bus and will come back to our rooms.
“We have communicated the safety measures to our parents through WiFi available here and they are all keeping track of the status. Our coach Jaipal is in charge of us,” said Ajith, son of a daily wage labourer in Theni, who happens to be the only medallist from India at the moment.
Ajith, a class 11 student of Pachaiyappa's College Higher Secondary School, Chennai, mentioned that the events scheduled for Saturday were delayed by a couple of hours due to the existing turbulence.
“Naveen (200m) is the only athlete in action today. The organisers have told us that changes in the schedule are unlikely,” he added. They are scheduled to leave for India on the night of July 18.
