To provide fillip to winter sports in Jammu & Kashmir, Union Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya announced the government’s plans of converting Gulmarg into a sporting hub here on Wednesday.
The Union Sports Minister said this while attending the closing ceremony of the fifth Khelo India Winter Games at the Gulmarg Golf Club. The closing ceremony was also attended by honourable Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir Omar Abdullah and J&K Minister of Youth Services & Sports Satish Sharma, among others.
“India has got immense talent and we have to find and nurture it from 9 years to 24 years. To be able to do this we have to create a sports school at each district across the sub-continent, where raw talent will be scouted and then trained at National Centres of Excellence across the country. We will ensure that they are able to compete at national and international level with all support these youngsters require. Jammu & Kashmir is already organising one of the best upskilling of coaches’ programme among all Indian States. I have conveyed to all States to follow the coaching model created by J&K,” Dr. Mandaviya said during his closing ceremony address.
“The Indian government has a responsibility of developing sports across the country and Narendra Modi’s government will put in all efforts to help elevate the level of sports in Jammu & Kashmir. We plan to create a sporting hub for winter sports here in Gulmarg to give the youth of Jammu & Kashmir the best opportunity and infrastructure to excel in sports,” he added.
Dr Mandaviya said that he met sports ministers of 28 States and 8 Union Territories and senior members of National Sports Federations to create a proper roadmap in the build-up to hosting the 2036 Summer Olympics.
“Keeping in mind that we want to host the 2036 Olympic Games, we have to develop a robust sports infrastructure and a quality sports ecosystem. For this we will have to create a proper roadmap. Many at times we set a goal but the pathway required to reach there is missing. For this we had a three-day brainstorming session with the sports ministers, senior representatives of National Sports Federations, renowned athletes and sports experts in Hyderabad last week. We created a roadmap for the next 10 years with the inputs we received from all stakeholders,” he said.
The Union Sports Minister said that Gulmarg was known not just as a meadow of flowers but had now also come to be known as India's Winter Games city.
“I have visited many foreign countries and skiing destinations but I can tell you that Gulmarg is way better, way beautiful and one of the best tourist and skiing destinations in the world. We just have to use opportunities to make the destination even better,” he said.
Dr. Mandaviya handed the champions trophy to the Indian Army, who clinched 18 medals, including 7 gold 5 silver and 6 bronze, to defend their title. A spirited Himachal Pradesh had to settle for the runner-up title with 6 gold, 5 silver and 7 bronze medals. Union Territory of Ladakh came third with 7 medals, comprising 4 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze.