In a shocking revelation, Athletics Federation of India (AFI) spokesperson Dr Adille Sumariwalla said that over 90 percent of tracks in India are substandard and are now under the scanner.

Sumariwalla confirmed that most Indian tracks are substandard in terms of materials, construction, and even measurements.

“Over 90% of tracks in India are sub-standard whether it is the laying methodology, thickness, or the material used. In some cases, tyre rubber is used instead of proper polyurethane,” he said while addressing the media in New Delhi on Saturday.

He pointed out that after insistence from World Athletics, the AFI will have to be involved in the process and intensify testing of tracks.

“AFI was never involved and stayed away from it for a long time. The way the tracks have been awarded is not something we want to get into. We’ve never certified any track ever,” Sumariwalla said.

“We stayed away from certification, but now World Athletics has asked us to step in, so we will have to in future. They showed us some data during the World Championship in Tokyo and the results were shocking,” he added.

The AFI now plans to vet a list of vendors from across the globe and also intends to intensify testing of the tracks. This development comes after the federation conducted a course with experts on how a track is to be laid, tested, and measured.

Five teams for World Relays 2026

India will be sending official entries in five relay team events at the World Athletics Relays Gaborone 2026 scheduled on May 2-3.

The athletes qualified for relays include:

4×400 Men/Mixed: Rajesh Ramesh, Manu TS, Amol Jacob, Dharmveer Choudhury, Nihal Joel, Vishal TK, Theerthesh Shetty, Jay Kumar

4×400 Mixed: Rashdeep Kaur, Saloni Kumari, Ansa Babu

4x100m Men/Mixed: Pranav Gurav, Gurindervir Singh, Animesh Kujur, Ragul Kumar, Harsh Raut, Tamil Arasu

4x100m Women/Mixed: Nithya Gandhe, Senha SS, Tamanna, Sudeshna Shivankar, Sribani Nanda.

More to follow…