Sonowal Inaugurates National Academy for Athletics and National Golf Academy at Thiruvananthapuram

New Delhi, September 22, 2014: The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development, Entrepreneurship, Youth Affairs and Sports Sarbananda Sonowal today inaugurated two Sports Academies – National Academy for Athletics and National Academy for Golf at Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Speaking on the occasion, Sonowal urged the youth and sports enthusiasts to make sports a part of their daily life. Quoting Swami Vivakananda, the Minister said, “playing football will make you understand the meaning of Bhagavat Geeta”.

The National Academy for Athletics will give training for sub junior, junior and senior athletes, selected across the Country with the help of expert coaches including foreign ones. The Academy has been established as the first Academy in Sports in the country under Public-Private Partnership with M/s. JSW.

For National Golf Academy, Sports Authority of India has initially selected 20 children in the age group of 8 to 14 from various schools in Kerala who will be the first batch of Golfers in the Academy. As golf has become an Olympic discipline from the next Olympics in Rio in Brazil from 2016 onwards it is a great opportunity for India to participate in Golf.

Sonowal honoured the sportspersons and eminent athletes at the inaugural ceremony.

The inaugural function was presided over by Sports Minister of Kerala Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan. Anju Boby George, Robert Bobby George, Wilson Cheriyan, Shiny Wilson, Sriram Singh, Padmini Thomas, T.C. Yohannan, O.M. Nambiar, Beenamol, Subhash George, Uday K. Prabhu, Anil Kumar, VSM, Rupinder Singh, Ian Ladbrooke and Saji Thomas were among those who were present on the occasion.

A minute of silence was observed in memory of late Udaya Kumar, former Captain of National Volleyball Team, who died recently.
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