Sportspersons win four gold medals in meet
Krishna District athletes’ reigned supreme winning four gold medals in archery, gymnastics, badminton and table tennis in the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan women’s sports and games meet that concluded on Friday. East Godavari and Vizag took weightlifting and tennis honours while Chittoor and Kurnool took the first place in judo and swimming respectively.
Speaking at the closing ceremony, Minister for Excise Kollu Ravindra said that these meets will help sports administrators tap the raw talent from rural areas.
“Sports, when compared other countries, is lagging behind in India and the need of the hour of effective policies both by the Central and the State governments. Sports took back seat during the Congress rule for 10 years and the new State after bifurcation will witness surge in sports activities under the stewardship of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu,” he promised.
MP Kesineni Srinivas said under the Local Area Development Scheme he had sanctioned Rs. 3 lakhs to 100-odd municipal schools in city towards purchase of sports equipment.
“The new capital city will witness best of sports infrastructure and playfields. Andhra Cricket Association has already taken the cue and is constructing a stadium at Mangalagiri,” he pointed out. He said though the 13 districts did not have quality infrastructure, the athletes excelled in their respective events by winning several medals.
Zilla Parishad Chairperson Gadde Anuradha said players like Koneru Humpy and Karnam Malleswari inspired many youngsters to pursue sports and games and asked women to shun the ‘soft’ image and train hard to make a mark in sports.
Krishna District Olympic Association secretary K.P. Rao emphasised the importance of making sports as a compulsory subject in the school curriculum.
City Mayor Koneru Sridhar, Joint Collector J. Murali, sports administrators K.Ch. Punnaiah Chowdary, Ch. Satyanarayana, K. Pattabhi Ram and District Sports Development Officer P. Ramakrishna took part.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by Special Correspondent / Vijayawada – November 22nd, 2014