Indian sports wrap, February 27: Sports Minister focuses on strengthening sports ecosystem
In an attempt to strengthen the sports ecosystem in the country, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) has launched the Special Capacity Building Course for athletes turned coaches at the Netaji Subhash National Institute of Sports in Patiala.
Giving details about the project, the Union Sports Minister Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya said that the focus was to help the employees in central government and central public sector undertakings who have primarily been employed in sports quota.
“We need a lot of good coaches,” said the Minister.
The course would be open to a wide range of athletes from national medal winners to Olympic medallists, with a minimum educational qualification of graduation from any recognised University in the country.
The course will have four certification levels – foundation, primary, intermediate and advanced. There will be a flexibility of learning options allowing a candidate to complete each level within two years while being occupied with their job.
The six-week course at each level can be taken in hybrid mode of two weeks online plus four weeks of physical presence at the centre, or fully offline. The course will address modern coaching, sports science, yogasana, leadership, etc. to equip the aspiring coaches with a wide range of professional skills. It will also look to touch the topics of, best practices, administration, talent development and competition management.
“We will further enhance the knowledge of the deserving coaches by sending them for international courses abroad,” the Sports minister said.
Looking at the immediate task, Dr. Mandaviya announced that there would be a three-day session to plan the preparation for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, at the Kanha Shanti Vanam in Hyderabad, from March 7.
The State Sports Ministers, State Sports Secretaries, IOA members, apart from experts and eminent sports personalities are scheduled to be part of the brainstorming session.
– Kamesh Srinivasan
SPORTSTAR