Corruption and regional politics are major factors too. Suffice it to say sports is not very meritocratic in India. A person has to be exceptionally talented to jump through all the hoops. Quoting from http://www.indianexpress.com/news/corruption-in-sports-leads... Sunita Godara, a former marathon runner and Arjuna Award winner, said, “We decided to join Anna Hazare as we have been fighting against corruption at various levels in the sports bodies for the past 20 years. There is favouritism in the selection process and corruption at every level.”