As India ramps up its high-decibel pitch to host the 2036 Olympic Games, a silent predator is dismantling the country’s sporting ambitions from within. An investigation by The Indian Express reveals that the combination of toxic winter air and blistering 50°C summers is causing a "slow, relentless erosion" of India’s elite training cycles.
For India’s elite athletes, training has shifted from a test of grit to a gamble with health. Dronacharya Award-winning hockey coach Pritam Siwach highlights a heart-breaking cycle at the SAI Sonepat centre: players fall sick, recover, and immediately fall sick again due to the air.
When we see dark clouds over our heads, we are happy because it means rain and fresh air
Pritam Siwach, Hockey Coach
Dr. Randeep Guleria, former AIIMS chief, warns that the impact is systemic. High breathing rates during exercise mean athletes inhale more harmful particles, leading to:
Lung strain: Reduced exercise capacity and chronic chest tightness.
Cumulative damage: Long-term risks to the heart and brain.
Shrinking window: Effective outdoor training is now limited to just two or three months a year.
The harsh reality has forced a "sporting exodus." Athletes with the means are fleeing the northern hubs:
Tejaswin Shankar (Decathlete): Left Delhi for Bhubaneswar, then South Africa, and now the US to escape the "physiological costs."
Neeraj Chopra (Javelin): Has long advocated for indoor facilities, noting that training in 50°C heat in Patiala is "extremely difficult."
Simran Sharma (Para-athlete): Her coach reports she frequently vomits during repeated sprints due to the pollution levels in the capital.
While elite stars can relocate south or overseas, grassroots talent, the very cohort meant to play for a medal in 2036, remains trapped in the smog, their development stunted before it even begins.
India is planning a ₹2,000 crore makeover of the NIS Patiala and new Olympic Training Centres. However, experts like Pullela Gopichand and coach Siwach argue that the focus must shift to climate-controlled indoor arenas.
The IOC Athletes’ Commission has already confirmed it is in touch regarding health concerns raised during the recent India Open. With Delhi failing to record a single "clean air" day in 2025 and heatwaves projected to double by 2030, the " Indo-Gangetic belt" is becoming a liability. As Dr. Guleria puts it, India may need to move its entire base camp of elite sports outside central India to save its athletes.
