NEW DELHI: The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has set the ball rolling to set up infrastructure-rich centres of excellence in its sporting facilities to provide intensive training to talented sportspersons preparing for Olympics and other mega events, Press Trust of India reports.
DDA deputy chairman Tarun Kapoor confirmed the development after felicitating and awarding cash prizes of Rs. 500,000 (gold medal) and Rs. 300,000 (silver medal) to Asian Games 2018 medallists, who had trained at its sports complexes.
“We are very proud of their achievements and the fact that they brought laurels for the country after receiving training at DDA sports complexes. I also hope that more such achievers will emerge in the future,” Kapoor was quoted as saying to PTI.
“We also have many eminent coaches training players or running our facilities at some places. Besides existing set-ups, we will also tie up with the Sports Ministry and the SAI to get the best of the talent, who can be avail these facilities and make us proud in the world arena,” he added.
Interacting with reporters at the Vikas Sadan here, Kapoor said that the DDA has also planned to tie up with the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) for developing the proposed centres at existing sporting facilities as well as in those coming up in the national capital.
The DDA currently has 15 main sports complexes, besides three minor facilities, officials said. The major facilities include the Siri Fort Sports Complex, Yamuna Sports Complex, Squash and Badminton Stadium, Commonwealth Games Village Sports Complex, Chilla Sports Complex and the Qutub Golf Course.
A centre of excellence has been proposed for wrestling, weightlifting, boxing, judo and kabaddi at the 9.78-ha facility coming up in Dwarka’s Sector 8. The same goes for football ,hockey and aquatics at the new complexes planned at Dwarka’s Sector 23 and Rohini’s Sector 33 respectively among others.
“The centres of excellence proposed at the existing facilities are — for shooting (10 metre air rifle/pistol) and tennis at the Siri Fort complex, table tennis and hockey at the Yamuna complex, badminton and squash at the Squash and Badminton Stadium, athletics and swimming at the Commonwealth Games Village, wrestling, weightlifting, boxing and judo at the Chilla complex, and golf at the Qutub Golf Course,” Kapoor signed off.
