Nishant Kr Azad
Everybody wants to be a part of sports, being a growing sector. To get corporate entities and key sports stakeholders to discuss investment opportunities in sports assets in India at first-of its-kind networking platform, SportsEX Asia organised a conference at the Lalit Hotel, Delhi supported by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Speaking to Organiser, about the SportEx Conference, Om Pathak, Head of School Sports Promotion Foundation (SSPF) and member of India’s Olympic Task Force said that it’s a good initiative. Events like these will provide a
professional leverage to improve the sports culture in India. Because eventually, the sports have to find money to fund itself. And quite a part on the governmental patronage, it will also have to have the corporate patronage without which it will not go forward. It’s a good opportunity to sensitise the corporate and see whether they have an appetite for coming to sports.
| ‘Stakeholders should be involved in framing sports policy’ What is the main purpose of SportEX Conference? |
Being asked about finding talents from the rural areas, he said, “We are working on grass roots level to improve the condition of sports in India. No plan can succeed without a sustainable grass roots programme. Our champions of tomorrow are in schools today and it’s time to reach and nurture them. There are 13 crore children in schools today and our effort is to reach out to each and every child.
On the occasion, Sandeep Pradhan, Director General of Sports Authority of Gujarat said, “The purpose of sports is not only to win medals. Medals are the final concept. In 2010, the then Chief Minister of Gujarat and present Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought the concept of Khel Mahakumbh. The purpose was only to create the culture of sports which later resulted into a massive talent-search. On Public-Private Partnership (PPP), he said that PPP is essential at all levels of sports.
The key points of discussion in the conference were the significant rise in the Indian Sports Industry with the introduction of leagues such as ISL, IPL, Pro-Kabaddi, with the increasing awareness of sports sector, government is reaching out to the remote areas in search of local talent to enhance the sports culture in the country, the
need to invest money, aspirational role models and a sense of fairness into the limelight in order to achieve success in sports, significance of introducing sports in academics at an early level, integrating sports and technology to reach out to masses.
Raghvendra Madhav, Chairman SportEX Asia said, “The sporting ecosystem is in dearth of opportunities. It needs encouragement from the local entrepreneurs as well. And as we all know that with accountability comes the sense of responsibility, we need responsible individuals who are adept at driving sports and the nation together towards a better tomorrow.”
Nitin Kukreja CEO Star Sports said, “Sports are the best medium of entertainment because you get everything in a limited time. We have to recognise, in which field Indians are good.”
Sundar Raman, CEO Reliance Sports in his keynote address said, “It’s time to build India as sports loving destination.” Emphasing on football he said, football has a big opportunity in coming days. We never had a club culture. We need a European system to groom football players. Indian football’s good days are ahead.
“Don’t put pressure on children to leave sports. Let them choose their career on their own. Encourage your children to take up sports as career instead of considering it only for entertainment. Parents should feel proud when their
children choose sports as their career. It’s time to encourage students. Schools, colleges & universities can be a good medium. We have to create a forum,” he added.
Suryavir Madhav, Marketing Director of SportEX Asia also pointed out, “Sports build team spirit and inculcate a spirit of excellence in youth”.
The conference was attended by International delegates such as Marco Garces from Pachuca FC and Liu Chang from Yunyi Investment Group.
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