Kunhumohammed’s London Dreams shattered due to money problem, lack of funds comes in Abraham’s way as well

What exactly does Rs 30,000 mean in these inflationary times? Well, if you're a champion athlete in India, it could mean the end of a dream, says a report in The Times Of India. P Kunhumohammed, India's best hope for the London Olympics in men's 400m, needed that sum to make it to the national athletics competition of Sri Lanka, beginning on Thursday.

The event represented his last chance to qualify for the Olympics. But lack of funds and official apathy crushed his hopes, and also those of Joseph G Abraham, Asian Games gold medallist in the 400m hurdles. "We knocked on several doors in Kerala but no one came forward. I checked my account and it had only Rs 9,000," Kunhumohammed told TOI.

India's top athletes P Kunhumohammed (400m) and Joseph Abraham (400m hurdles) will not be able to compete in Sri Lanka's national athletics championship, the Indian duo's last chance for qualifying for the London Olympics, due to lack of funds.  "We knew it was the last chance (for London) and we got them entries with great difficulty but I heard that they are not competing," Athletics Federation of India secretary CK Valson said.

A day after returning from Almaty where he failed to reach the standard of 49.80s in the Asian All-Star meet, clocking 50.22s, Joseph Abraham and 400m runner P. Kunhumohammed were contemplating a desperate attempt in Colombo, says a report in The Hindu.

“We decided against it,” said Abraham on Wednesday, on phone from Patiala. He was getting ready to pack up from the NIS. The others, mainly relay runners, had already left for home.

The qualifying mark was well within the reach of Abraham, a hurdler who has four career marks below the norm, though the last one (49.59s) had come in Chennai three years ago. “I cannot blame anyone. I cannot attribute it to anything other than my own failure. I tried hard, but I wasn’t up to it,” said Abraham, disappointed a second time that he would not be going to the Olympics.

His best this season was the 49.98s he clocked in the Federation Cup at Patiala in April. He had failed to make it to Beijing four years ago by a hundredth of a second, clocking his career-best and National record of 49.51s in the semifinals of the 2007 World championships in Osaka as against the standard of 49.50s. “I am not destined to be an Olympian,” said Abraham.