bengaluru the union sports ministry has asked boxing india bi to look for another foreign coach with just 18 months left for the rio olympics it feels the sport has to find an alternative to banned cuban coach blas iglesias fernandez boxing india too holds a similar view while the federation appreciates fernandezs contribution to indian boxing it feels the main objective now is to find a new coach who is well versed with the latest trends and techniques in the sport fernandez twoyear ban ends in october 2016 by that time the olympics would be over even a partial reduction in the ban period wont help india a lot depends on whether boxing india is able to sort out the issue with the international boxing association aiba ministry sources told toi bi told us they are pursuing the matter with aiba we told them iden tifying another coach for the indian squad was equally important we need to have a foreign coach in place soon bi spokesperson neetal narang said the federation would weigh its priorities now fernandezs contribution to indian boxing is immense boxing india has been engaging with aiba on this front but he is serving a ban now with olympics 2016 being just 18 months away the priority is to prepare and groom our boxers for the event therefore we are now working on bringing in coaches who are abreast with the latest technical and tactical aspects of boxing can adjust to indian conditions and have requisite skill to train our boxers and deliver results narang said boxing in india has remained out of the main stream for the past three years during this period there has been a complete overhaul of the boxing eco system comprising changes in technical rules scoring system and introduction of some new formats by aiba providing quality training grooming and coaching to pugilists top our mustdos narang said boxing india was in the process of submitting the proposed longterm development plan along with the annual calendar of training and competitions with this boxing india will also share with sai their requirements and recommendation of indian and foreign coaches in coordination with sports authority of india these appointments will be made at the earliest she said