BAI medical commission chief regutes charges of mix-up

BANGALORE: Badminton Association of India's medical commission chief has dismissed allegations of poor results management, saying that X-rays for the age verification tests on shuttlers were done at recognised hospitals and systematically coded before they were analysed earlier this year.
"We followed the Tanner-Whithouse 3 method for players U-16 and below and the Greulich Pyle method for those 17 and above.I can assure you that every care was taken to ensure there was no mix-up," Dr Ashok Ahuja told TOI.
"I was personally in charge of the tests at Junior Nationals in Chandigarh while other experts did the job at the Sub-Junior Nationals in Cuttack. All X-rays were thoroughly examined before we put out the results in March-April.
"We also took care to cross-verify the names of the shuttlers, the states they belonged to and BAI identification numbers that each player has been allotted. All results were announced after taking into account the margin of error in these methods which is plus or minus six months in TW3 and two years in GP method," he added.
At the same time, Dr Ahuja felt that the decision of his team needn't be final. "I have always advocated an appeals system. Players have the right to appeal but the onus is on them to prove that they are right. If they want further investigations to be done, may be with MRI scans, seek the opinion of more experts, I am all for it," he said.
Incidentally, BAI does not have an appellate body in place. Ahuja pointed to the way the cricket board worked, saying that a sustained campaign over the years helped them record players' ages and weed out the frauds.
"Every X-ray is studied by two experts, one in India and the other in Germany. Though it takes about 45 minutes to study each X-ray, it is worth the effort."
BCCI's focus is on the U-16 age group (Vijay Merchant Trophy) where the TW3 method is applied. The GP method is used for those in the U-19 age group and above but with trepidation as the margin of error is plus or minus two years.
"But strict measures in the U-16 sector have minimised our work in the higher age groups. We apply the GP method on late bloomers but without much conviction."
Dr Ahuja wanted the drive to be intensified in badminton. "Last year, we tested only the quarterfinalists in both the Nationals. I would suggest increasing the testing pool and continue for a longer period. The federation will have to spend more but it will be worth the effort."
Karnataka Badminton Association president U Vimal Kumar too felt BAI must continue the practice of testing players at National Championships.
FAST FACTS
TW3 method for U-16 age group and below: Considered the best way to determine age in lower age groups such as U-14, U-15 and U-17 levels. It does not work that well in U-19 onwards. Twenty bones of hand, surrounding the wrist, are analyzed with one X-ray.
Exposure to radiation reduced thanks to a single X-ray.
Margin of error is six months while with other methods the variation can be 2-4 years.
GP Method for U-17 and U-19 age groups: X-rays of the shoulder and pelvis region done to examine the ossification of the bones. The margin of error -plus or minus two years -is worrisome.
Despite the grey area, medical experts ensure that the player concerned is never below the age specified. Fusion of bones indicate that the player is above 17.