Gavaskar backs Salman a Rio Olympic ambassador

Former India cricket captain Sunil Gavaskar on Monday said there was nothing wrong with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) appointing Salman Khan as the Indian contingent’s goodwill ambassador at the Rio Olympics, citing the example of how the IPL “benefitted” through its association with Bollywood stars.

Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir, however, opposed the move, saying he would prefer it if someone like gold medal winner Abhinav Bindra had been appointed the ambassador.

“Why not a known face who is not really a part of that particular profession. If he can bring a lot more awareness to that particular profession then why not? I don’t see anything wrong in it,” Gavaskar



said.

“How has IPL been benefitted by having Bollywood stars in it? It has helped considerably in bringing the crowd to the stadium. Eventually, it’s mainly because of the kind of cricket being played that will decide the fate of that edition of the IPL but having Shah Rukh (Khan), Preity (Zinta) in the ground, a lot of people come to see them, so that’s a plus,” he was quoted as saying by ‘NDTV’.

Salman’s appointment as the goodwill ambassador on Saturday triggered a furore that left the sports fraternity divided with the likes of star wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt and sprint legend Milkha Singh questioning the move, while Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and other athletes supported the decision.