Kathmandu, August 3 :

A group of cyclists denounced the nepotism within the Nepal Mountain Bike Association (NMBA) in selecting the players for the 10th South Asian Games to be held in Sri Lanka from August 18.

Led by ace cyclist Suresh Kumar Dulal, five other cyclists protested against NMBA president Chhimmi Urken Gurung for conspiring in selecting Sanjeev Thapa Chhetri. NMBA had organised a ‘special race’ for Chhetri and Nirjala Tamrakar last month.

The players blamed the association for not completing a minimum criterion for the selection. “Nirjala Tamrakar is a genuine player and we have no objection with her but Sanjeev does not deserve the spot in SAG,” said Dulal, adding the NMBA never wanted us to participate in the qualifying race.

“If only NMBA had called for the selection, more than 100 cyclists would have turned in,” he added. “Sanjeev and Nirjala completed the formality,” claimed Dulal, who has won nine different national competitions.

According to Dulal, Sanjeev — an employee at NMBA president Gurung’s company Dawn Till Dusk — has never won any tournament and choosing him instead of other cyclists is farcical. “The SAG is a platform to earn national pride and the NMBA president has acted against the national interest.”

“Sanjeev is the one who could not even complete the 27-km qualifying in November, 2005 for the 25th Asian Cycling Championship in Ludhiana,” Dulal revealed.

Dulal also accused the NMBA officials of sending him to Bangkok for the 10-day Track Cycling Training in July and organising the ‘secret’ selection. “NMBA decided to send me and Sanjeev for the training but Sanjeev withdrew at the last moment,” Dulal said, adding that it could be their plan to put him away from the SAG.

When inquired about the issue, National Sports Council member secretary Jeevan Ram Shrestha said that he had sent NSC representative to supervise the selection. “The NMBA informed us that there were only two cyclists for the selection,” said Shrestha.

“Some cyclists informed me about the incident but it was too late to react as we had already sent the list to the organisers,” he said. “I wanted the best player to participate in the regional competition and if the association or any individual is found guilty, we will take action,” Shrestha assured.

Nepal is taking part in cycling for the first time in the 10th SAG. The course in the men’s race is 186-km while the distance in women’s section is 60-km.