Kanteerava the battleground as two Fed Cup events collide
The Sree Kanteerava stadium in Bengaluru is caught up in a melee with Junior Fed Cup Athletics Championship and Federation Cup football tournament scheduled to be played at the same venue on the same day. Bengaluru FC is scheduled to take on Aizawl on May 3, on the same day as the Athletics event.
After losing the first leg of their Federation Cup tie 1-2 against Aizawl FC, defending champions Bengaluru FC could be in for more trouble as their home leg at the Sree Kanteerava stadium in Bengaluru on May 3 heads into a collision course with the 14th Junior Federation Cup Athletics Championship, which is scheduled to start on the same day. The intense heat waves during the daytime have forced the Karnataka Athletics Association (KAA) to conduct the events under floodlights, and with the football match scheduled to start at 7 in the evening, both parties are caught in an embarrassing situation where one has to make way for the other.
The KAA has vowed to go ahead with the meet irrespective of the decision from the football club.
“We had discussions with the ministers concerned and explained to them that we have booked the stadium well in advance. How can a football match be conducted at the same venue?” questioned KAA secretary Chandrashekar Rai, reported the New Indian Express.
“We are not against football activities but it is hampering the daily training schedules of the athletes. This has been going on for the last one-and-half years,” KAA vice-president Uday Prabhu added.
To make matters worse for Bengaluru FC, top former athletes including Ashwini Nachappa appealed to the government on Saturday to ensure the smooth organization of the Athletics meet.
"Our athletes have waited for the last one-and-a-half years to train at the stadium. But we were told that the City is hosting the U-17 World Cup and so BFC needed the stadium till such time the tournament is over. Now that the event is not happening in the City we request the government to take steps to help the athletes use the track and the field," former sprint queen Ashwini told reporters in Bengaluru, reported the Times of India.
Although Bengaluru FC