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Eleven times former national champion in 100 m sprint, Adille Sumariwalla now races against time. As vice president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), president of the Athletic Federation of India (AFI), council member of World Athletics (WA), he serves on various national and international committees and commissions. A week before he flew to Tokyo to attend the Summer Olympics that started on July 23, Sumariwalla squeezed in some moments to address queries from Parsiana, thanks to the intervention of his wife Armaity. 
India has sent its largest contingent of 228 members to the Tokyo Olympics. In addition to the 128 sportspersons competing in 85 events are their coaches, doctors, masseurs and physiotherapists. "No spectators will be permitted at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics,” stated Sumariwalla whose role as jury member for track and field events was expected to keep him preoccupied. "I am the only Indian on the jury this time,” he stated. While the Tokyo Olympics had a Parsi on the jury, for the 1920 Olympics there was another Parsi, Sohrab Bhoot, as the manager of the six-member Indian contingent (see "Anchor for athletes,” pg 126).
Representing India on the five-member jury, he is expected to be conversant with the rule book. When decisions are challenged, the jury minutely studies the replays of the supposed transgressions from different angles before giving its verdict. Protests may be raised over somebody touching or crossing the line, obstructing another competitor, running instead of walking…
Due to Covid-19 restrictions, there are certain rules governing the safety of participants who need to be tested daily via rapid saliva antigen test, and if required polymerase chain reaction test. Movement of competitors is restricted to the Olympic village, using the designated transport. They have to maintain a two-meter distance at all times except when competing in individual or team events. Hugs, handshakes and high fives are discouraged. Visiting tourist sites or restaurants are not permitted.
Contrary to media reports that sports officials and their families travel overseas with the team to enjoy merry jaunts, Sumariwalla insisted that "it has not happened in the last 10-15 years. A lot of this is misconstrued by the media.” He mentioned how he had personally spent    $ 15,000 on the airfare and entrance tickets for his children who if seen with him in Tokyo may have caused loose talk without verification. Since non-participants will not be permitted at the venue, "It is a different matter that I will now have to seek a refund,” he continued.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In his third four-year term as president of the AFI, elected unopposed in 2020, Sumariwalla conveyed that currently he has no aspirations to take on more responsibilities at the IOA. "I’d prefer to stay vice president,” he confirmed. While giving credit to his "dedicated team of 20 members in Delhi” who handle the AFI workload, Sumariwalla clarified that "nothing comes from the government. To pay their salaries, the AFI has to raise funds. The government contributes towards sports coaching but those sums go directly to the athletes and the coaches.”
Besides organizing national championships, AFI selects the Indian athletics teams for various international competitions, including the Olympics, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, and popularizes athletics among the masses, making it commercially attractive for the further growth of the athlete and the sport. It also assists 32 affiliated state and institutional units in their activities, plans coaching camps and takes initiatives for development programs and grassroot promotion of athletics in India.
On the AFI website, Sumariwalla’s message noted, "Indian athletics is poised to take a big leap into the international arena and keep its tryst with the millions of young aspirants and athletics aficionados, the thousands of athletes and coaches who have devoted their entire life to pursue their passion with a burning zeal to excel. The AFI is committed to all these stakeholders of the sport, and taking it further to dizzy heights.”
When scouting for sportspersons with potential, Sumariwalla finds no members from the community. "It saddens me a lot that there is no Parsi talent emerging. There is so much we can do to help. I don’t know why the Parsi youth are not putting in enough effort,” he laments. He refers to the decade of 1980s when "there were 10 or 12 of us on the Maharashtra team and winning medals at the national level.” Sumariwalla himself had progressed to the international level and competed at the Moscow Olympics in 1980. His involvement in sports administration started as a coach for athletes like Hirji Nagarwala and Zenia Ayrton. He gradually progressed from the district to the state, national and finally international scene.
When he was first elected council member of WA in 2015, he was the "first Indian” in its 109-year-old history. Originally founded as the International Amateur Athletic Federations in 1912 in Sweden, in 2001 it changed its name to International Association of Athletics Federations and in 2019 to WA with the headquarters shifted to Monaco. At the 2019 council elections "when 214 countries voted, I got among the highest votes,” mentioned Sumariwalla. One of the largest sporting organizations in the world, its 26-member council is "responsible for all decisions related to the sport of athletics as well as for the conduct and management of the sport and its disciplines,” according to its website. Besides serving on the council, Sumariwalla has been appointed to the WA’s executive board risk committee as also the development commission.
Working 14 hours a day, 63-year-old Sumariwalla devotes nearly 60% of his time to his media company Interspace Communications Private Limited where he is managing director and spends the remaining on sports management. Interspace Communications helps brands to raise their commercial equity through multimedia usage. "I have to earn a living,” he declares.