It is not only controversial women's 400m coach Yuri Ogorodnik whose appointment is yet to be cleared by the government but the case of another Ukrainian, Yuri Mineyoka, who has been proposed by Athletics Federation of India to coach star discus thrower Seema Punia, is also pending for some time.
The AFI has proposed the names of the two Ukrainian coaches along with that of others and the Sports Ministry has even agreed their agreement "in principle".
AFI President Adille Sumariwalla today said that the federation was concerned about the lack of training time for the athletes if the appointments are not cleared expeditiously.
"We are a bit concerned now because World Championships (August 22-30 in Beijing) is less than six months and Rio Olympics is just over a year. The ministry has accepted their appointment as coaches in the Steering Committee meeting on January 5 and there is no official letter of the sanction letter," he told PTI.
"Time is crucial as the athletes need proper preparation. Ultimately, it is the athletes only who will suffer by this delay in the appointment of the foreign coaches," he said.
Ogorodnik was sacked by the sports ministry and sent back home after top Indian quartermilers, including women's 4x400m relay gold medal winners in the 2010 Commonwealth and Asian Games, flunked dope tests in 2011.
The AFI proposed Ogorodnik's name again, contending that his alleged involvement in the dope shame could not be proved by the NADA Disciplinary and Appeal panels and by another one-man commission set up by the government.
Mineyoka, on the other hand, was the coach of Seema in 2008 and the AFI thought that the Ukrainian can bring improvement in her performance further to stand for any chance of a medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
