By Susil Premalal

National Olympic Committee (NOC) president Suresh Subramaniam has proposed the formation of a National Sports Authority (NSA) to regulate sports in the country.

Members of the NSA should comprise veterans of the sport, and they should be given a mandate to govern for at least 10 years, according to Subramaniam. This is in order to ensure continuity in administration of sports in the country, he added.

The NSA should be an independent body devoid of political interference and the National Selection Committee and the National Sports Council should come under the aegis of the Authority, according to the NOC chief.

Sports is administered by a National Sports Authority in most countries around the world, and it will reduce the effect of political interference, he said.

“How many Sports Ministers have we had during the past five years? The Secretary of the Sports Ministry or the Director-General of the Sports Ministry is changed every time a new Sports Minister comes. As a result we cannot set goals to develop sports in the country. The vision of the Sports Ministers also keeps changing,” Subramaniam said.

“The National Sports Authority will abide by the principles of the National Sports Policy to ensure development of sports is on the right track. Success can be achieved in the international arena as well. Sports in South Asia and around the world is governed by the National Sports Authority. Specially in countries like India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Although in our country every Sports Minister lays down a national sports policy, since they are in office for a short time it is not implemented,” he pointed out.

“Sri Lanka cannot expect a medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympic. My target is the 2024 Paris Olympics. Before that we have a chance of winning medals at the 2022 Asian Games and Commonwealth Games,” he concluded.