New Delhi, Oct 24 (PTI) Chief Minister Atishi on Thursday inaugurated the Delhi State School games at the Chhatrasal Stadium, with a message of hope and encouragement for young athletes.
Addressing the event, Atishi expressed her belief that the participating students have the potential to compete in the Asian Games and Olympics.
"What we see here as a 10-15 minute game is backed by years of hard work that may not be immediately visible," she stated.
Atishi further said, "The children performing here may go on to compete at the national or international level. While other children were relaxing and enjoying themselves, our athletes were exercising and preparing, which is a significant achievement for us."
She mentioned that the Delhi government has tried to support students who aspire to move forward in sports.
"Sports coaching and equipment can be expensive, and children studying in government schools often come from simple families. That’s why the state government has been running the Play and Progress scheme for several years, providing Rs 3-4 lakh for training and coaching for children up to 17 years old," she said.
She mentioned that from 2018 to 2022, over 1,500 athletes received support through the Play and Progress scheme, and we hope to support many more athletes through this initiative in the future.
Atishi said, "To support talented sportspersons, the government has launched the Mission Excellence initiative, where athletes can receive support of up to Rs 16 lakh for diet, coaching, and equipment. In the last four years, 400 such athletes have received Rs 25 crore.”
"Over 3,500 government, government-aided, and privately recognised schools from 29 zones across 15 districts participated in zonal sports competitions, including under-14, under-17, and 34 sports," said an official statement.
According to the statement, the winner of zonal sports competitions will compete in the Delhi State School Games, and sports activities for para-athlete students will be organised in 13 different sports during the Delhi State School Games.
Most of the sports in the list of 34 games like swimming, taekwondo, baseball, cricket, and 13 para-games, are also part of international competitions such as the Olympics, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games, it stated.