Rijiju lauds Odisha govt for promoting sports

Bhubaneswar: Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports, Kiren Rijiju on Friday lauded the Odisha government for promoting sports in a big way.

He met Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the Lok Seva Bhawan here. He proposed Naveen for hosting the upcoming all India University Games at Bhubaneswar.

“I am impressed the way the Odisha Government is supporting and promoting sports. Over the years, the State has introduced many initiatives to encourage various sports disciplines. International events are awarded basis these efforts and initiatives of the local Government,” said the Sports Minister.

Government and people of Odisha are very proactive in promoting sports. The enthusiasm amongst them is very palpable and this contributes to the growth of sports, he said.

“I wish the State Government the very best in its journey to further the outreach of Sports and assure our support in their initiatives. I look forward to visiting Odisha again and working with the local authorities, he added.

He also witnessed the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers matches and visited the Abhinav Bindra Target Performance Centre at the Kalinga Stadium Complex.

At the state-of-art ABTP Centre set up by Odisha Government in collaboration with Rungta Mines and Abhinav Futuristic, Sports Minister spent time understanding the working of different types of equipment such as the Walker-View, D- Wall, and Cryo-chamber.

He got a feel of the assessment and recovery mechanisms at the Centre that are assisting athletes in enhancing their sporting skills and performance at their games

Speaking about his visit, the Minister said, “I have come to Bhubaneswar to cheer and encourage our Hockey Women’s and Men’s team. I am extremely hopeful both our teams will qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. And as a Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, it is my responsibility to ensure our boys and girls are being encouraged appropriately and provide them support wherever necessary.”