Khelo India Youth Games 2019 will be held in Pune of Maharashtra from January 9 to January 20.
Union Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Sunday launched the jersey for the second edition of Khelo India, rechristened as Khelo India Youth Games in New Delhi.
Speaking at the event, Rajyavardhan Rathore said, “We want to create an ecosystem of sports in the country and ensure that our young athletes can get an international-level platform, through which they can showcase their sporting talent. We want to identify them young and extend them support because at that stage in an athlete’s career, they do not get sponsorship from the corporates.”
Rathore further said, “With Khelo India Youth Games, we are taking this mission a notch higher. Last year 3500 young athletes had participated in the games, but this year the number has almost tripled with 9000 athletes. We will not only reach out to more talented young athletes, we will also identify more talent and groom them to represent the country. I am confident that by 2028 Olympics, China will find it difficult to compete with us.”
The second edition of Khelo India Games will take place at the Shiv Chatrapati Sports Complex in Pune.
Rathore said, his Ministry is trying to develop a sports system that connects local talents to global podiums.
Minister of sports, education and youth welfare, Vinod Tawade, former World Champion and Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar and several other government dignitaries were present at the event.
The highlight of the event was the presence of eight young athletes several of them products of Khelo India School Games, who have bagged medals at international events. Esha Singh, Manu Bhaker, Saurabh Chaudhary, Lakshay Sheoran, Jeremy Lalrinnunga, Tababi Devi, Lakshya Sen and Srihari Nataraj, sported the new jersey and personified the very essence of the reach and impact that the games have had.
