After a long wait Odisha ace and fastest woman of India, Dutee Chand has been included in Core Group of the Target Olympic Podium (TOP) Scheme of the Government of India. This was officially announced by Sports Authority of India today.

Under the TOP Scheme, a flagship programme of Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, top athletes and potential medal winners of the coutry are provided assistance. Dutee has been named among 20 sportspersons, who would be given financial support for the Olympic Games 2021 (Tokyo) and 2024.

Having been included in the TOP Scheme, Dutee would be entitled to support for better training including foreign countries. While thanking both the Union and State governments for her inclusion in the TOPS, Dutee said training outside the country would help improve her performance.

Besides Dutee, 26 other athletes have been included in the TOPS. Among them, 19 have been chosen in Core Group in six disciplines, while seven have been selected in the Developmental Group.

TOPS CORE GROUP: Athletics: Shivpal Singh, Annu Rani, KT Irfan, Arokia Rajiv, Noah Nirmal Tom, Dutee Chand, Alex Anthony, MR Povamma. Boxing: Satish Kumar, Ashish Kumar, Pooja Rani, Simranjit Kaur. Para-athletics: Vinod Kumar, Praveen Kumar, Ajit Kumar Panchal. Para-badminton: Parul Parmar, Palak Kohli. Para-Table Tennis: Bhavina Patel. Para-Shooting: Rubina Francis, Sidharth Babu.

DEVELOPMENTAL: Athletics: Shaili Singh, Tejaswin Shankar, Harsh Kumar, Vithya R, Sandra Babu, Harshita Sherawat, Veeramani Revathi.
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PHOTO: Undated file photo Odisha Olympic sprinter Dutee Chand.