From Kantipuronline.com
===

High drama at TIA before Nepalese athletes� departure


By Ujjwal / Purushottam / Devendra

KATHMANDU, Aug 10 - It appears that controversy never leaves Nepalese sports. Few months ago, there was uncertainty over Nepal�s participation in the Summer Olympics in the Greek capital Athens due to infighting among sports officials over Nepal Olympic Committee. And today, Nepalese athletes almost did not fly out of Kathmandu because of bad management.
Happiness and optimism of a few Nepalese athletes, leaving for Athens Tuesday evening, turned into tears and humiliation. There were no officials to see them off or pay their airport taxes.

�No officials are here, we have no Nepali rupees to pay airport tax,� swimmer Nayana Shakya said with tears flowing down her cheeks.

�We were asked to reach here by four, but no one is here until now, and it�s already 5:10pm.� The Gulf Air flight was scheduled to take off at 6:15pm.

�We don�t know where to go and what to do,� athlete Rajendra Bhandari added. �We are stranded here.�

It also appeared that the two factions of the merged NOC had not coordinated their plans. When NOC vice-president Dhurba Bahadur Pradhan waltzed in at the airport, he said it was the responsibility of the National Sports Council to have made the arrangements for the athletes.

A team official Upendra Bhattarai, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Sports and Education, too only received his accreditation card, which works as visa, at 5:05pm. When he had called up Member Secretary of the National Sports Council Kishore Bahadur Singh to enquire about his accreditation card, Singh said he too was looking for his own card.

NOC president Rukma Shamsher Rana, arrived at the airport at 5:25pm to bid farewell to the team and expressed his indifference towards all the issues. �I don�t know� was what he said twice to answer a flurry of questions

After all the drama, Nepalese athletes finally did leave for Athens. With such dispute and mismanagement, performance of Nepalese athletes is likely to be affected. (rk)

And who would have expected that kantipuronline.com could post a report/analysis/judgement on their homepage, where you would normally only find news stories and not news opinions?

Sadly such is life back home. Such is the representation of our motherland. Such is the fact people have to go through everyday. Everybody expects to get something instead of contributing. It is always me..me..me first. I dont think we are used to giving back to the nation. So here is the result we see of being selfish...........

After Nepal sent two officials for WATER POLO at the Sydney Olympics, I have come to believe that the Nepalese Sports governing bodies are capable of doing (or NOT doing, in this case) anything.

Rukma Shumsher, along with his team, was doing OK until the Royal Palace propped up Kishore Bahadur Singh as its rep in the sports arena.

For better or worse, Rukma -- despite his being a snob at times -- enjoys
international contacts, has the requisite polish and charm, and can boast of having access to business networks to raise money to increase the profile of our athletes.

The company he is associated with -- Dabur Nepal -- recently joined forces with five other Nepal-based private business houses to pay for the expenses of Sangina
Vaidya, Nepal's FIRST-ever bona fide, qualified Olympic-caliber athlete. This was
the first time ever that Nepali business houses CAME TOGETHER to fund one
athelete's training expenses.

Kishore Bdr. Singh and his cohorts, on the other hand, have neither an access to
money nor an access to ideas. They just have an access to Palace's blessing and
an access to brute force.

My impression is that just Panchayat used sports (remember Sharad Chandra Shah and his goondas?) as a vehicle to further its own propaganda, the Palace these days is may well be trying to sports for purposes only it knows best.

In the process, sadly, the losers have been us all -- the athletes, the Nepali 'darshak' and even Nepal's international prestige.

oohi
ashu

Ashu,

The way you criticized Palace nominated Kishor Singh, I wonder
whether you will be OK? Because Maodai once accused you of
being Royal ..... and now you clearly show where you are?
Maodai (one of the Sajhaities.... Guess what? once upon
a time in semi-industrialized country... Taiwan ? Korea ?
or Israel? or Singapore?) said that there can be only
Black and White, no gray zone. Now, we as public are indeed
in gray zone: Bhedo Judai, Jhingo Michai.

I was also very very sad to read the news. I remember
a cousine of mine who went to Korea in 1986 as a Tae Kwon
Do player had to carry Ek Poka something at handed over to
him by a Sharad Chandra Shah's henchman and asked him
along with all athelets to hand over to a guy who will be coming
to visit at Seoul Airport after clearance of immigration and
custom. I am just wondering the things in Nepal still continues?
It might not be the same Poka, but, secret deals to Bhagne
Bhagaune as shown by UML heavy wt. last time .......

We are ashamed by these officials. It continues.

Rest Later.
GP

GP dai,

as for the bhagne bhagaune that you mentioned, I know that it is not ethically right. However, given the current situation in Nepal, most of the common folk's top agenda now seems to be "go to bidesh - no matter where, just get out of the country - and try to make ends meet if not make a lot of money. This bhagne bhagaune is present among not only the kheladis but any group that tours abroad - kalakaars, policemen, businessmen and what have you. People who can legally go abroad have been legally leaving the country under one pretext or the other. Others resort to the disappearing act. And besides, one can never know how many Nepalese men (and women) cross over to south of the border down India way.