Building A Sporting Nation: Uniting India’s Future Champions

India’s journey towards becoming a global sports powerhouse force is a collaborative effort, led by government entities, corporations, and communities. The focus on grassroots and community sports is seen as a crucial step towards developing future champions and elevating the nation’s presence on the global stage.

As India continues to grow as a sporting nation, the importance of grassroots and community sports cannot be overstated. Ritu Jhingon, President of the Anil Agarwal Foundation, emphasises the importance of collaboration in transforming India into a leading sports nation. She reflected on the pride of seeing India’s achievements on the global stage, noting, “With 1.4 billion people, the nation, government, and corporates coming together, I assure you we will be a sporting nation to reckon with.”

Reflecting on India’s recent successes, particularly in indigenous sports like wrestling, the pride in these achievements is palpable. “When you remember the Tokyo Olympics and the seven medals we won, it’s really about India and its indigenous sports,” Jhingon stated that it is a sentiment that resonates deeply with the country’s rich sporting heritage. The commitment to nurturing talent at the grassroots level is evident in initiatives such as training over 70,000 athletes across India from Vedanta’s 17 factories in rural areas.

She also mentioned the inspiring journey of Mohammed Kaif, the under-16 captain of India’s football team, who hails from a small village in Rajasthan and wears the Zinc Academy jersey with pride.

In addition to grassroots efforts, Vedanta’s contributions extend to community sports initiatives, such as supporting marathons across the country. “For every kilometre that you run, we donate a meal. Between last year and the year before, we have already donated 7 million meals to rural India,” Jhingon explained, highlighting the impact of these efforts on improving the health of children in underserved communities.

Jhingon also expressed pride in Vedanta’s support for para-athletes, including Paralympian Devendra Jhajharia, stating, “We have supported him in the last ten years of his journey, and the medals speak for themselves.”