Five Maharashtra athletes get aid for 2020 Tokyo Olympics preparations

Ace shooters Rahi Sarnobat and

Tejaswini Sawant were among the five sportspersons from Maharashtra who were given aid of Rs 50 lakh each to help them prepare for the Tokyo Olympics, which got rescheduled to 2021 from 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray distributed the funds to Sarnobat and Sawant in a function at his official residence 'Varsha' in south Mumbai on Monday.

A statement from the chief minister's office (CMO) said steeplechaser Avinash Sable and archer Pravin Jadhav were also given Rs 50 lakh aid as part of the state's 'Mission Olympics' scheme to prepare for the mega event.

International para-shooter Swaroop Unalkar, who is preparing for the Paralympics, was also given similar aid at the function, which was attended by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, minister Aditi Tatkare and others, it said.