After drawing flak for appointing Salman Khan, the IOA looked to deflect attention by Sachin Tendulkar, Abhinav Bindra and AR Rahman.
Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar accepted IOA's invitation to become the country's goodwill ambassador for the Rio Olympics alongside ace shooter Abhinav Bindra and Bollywood star Salman Khan after the controversial actor's appointment created an uproar.
With Salman's appointment drawing flak from different quarters, including Olympic bronze medal winning wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt and former athlete Milkha Singh, who had said the honour should be given to top sportspersons, the Indian Olympic Association had approached Bindra, Tendulkar and celebrated music composer AR Rehman.
Both Bindra and Tendulkar accepted the Indian Olympic Association's invitation. "Sachin Tendulkar has accepted our request to become goodwill ambassador of Indian contingent at the Olympics. We have received the official communication from him accepting our request," IOA Secretary General Rajiv Mehta told PTI.
"We are very happy to have an iconic sportsperson like Mr Tendulkar on board as goodwill ambassador. We are thankful to him. We hope his association and the association of other goodwill ambassadors will take Indian sport forward," he added.
Check out his open letter:
Dear Mr Mehta & Mr Ramachandran,
Thank you for the letter dated April 28, 2016 regarding the upcoming Olympic Games at Rio De Janeiro. I have had the privilege and honour of representing our nation for twenty-four years and I continue to bat for India off the field. The welfare of sportspersons and encouraging them to give their best is very dear to me.
I strongly believe that the sportspersons from different parts of the country, pursuing their unique skills are the true ambassadors of the growing sporting culture in this country. Awareness about their struggles, discipline and single minded focus will help develop many more world beating champions and courage passionate following of the Olympics in our country. It will be my pleasure to meet these world-class athletes before they leave for Rio to learn about their experiences and preparations.
I am also happy to be part of any awareness campaign that can rally the country around our athletes and motivate them, including amplifying their efforts and success on my Twitter and Facebook accounts. I have mentioned the nature of the role as envisaged by me as I am keen to rally enhanced support for our champion athletes. I look forward to receiving details on your planned initiatives towards this objective. My best wishes to the entire contingent as we look forward to them proudly expressing themselves in Rio!
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 "Sachin Tendulkar")
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