Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday said India is eyeing hosting the Olympics in 2036 and ending up in the top-10 lists in terms of medals. In his address at 'Viksit Bharat Ambassador - Yuva Connect', a campaign SP College, here, the Union Sports and Youth Affairs Minister outlined aims that will make it one of the top sports nations by 2047.
"In Viksit Bharat, special impetus has to be given to the sports sector as we aim to develop ourselves in every sector. By 2047, our objective is to reach the top five countries in sports. To achieve this objective and ensure we don't miss out on the 2047 opportunity, we have to create world-class sportspersons," he said.
The initiative was to develop such talent, and hence we kick-started Khelo India. With the help of Khelo India, young sportspersons should get such opportunities to play. We will have to identify sports talent and provide them with the requisite facilities. These talented individuals, in coming days, will become athletes like Swapnil Kusale, he added. Shooter Kusale, who won a bronze medal in the recently concluded Paris Olympics, was also present at the event.
"We have undertaken a project called KIRTI, Khelo India Rising Talent Identification, through which more than one lakh sportspersons have been identified. From this pool, further talented individuals were picked and given special support under the Targeted Olympic Podium Scheme, TOPS, Mandaviya said.
Selected sportspersons get training, nutritional support and other needed facilities besides best coaches along with international exposure under TOPS, he said. "This time, India has won six medals in the Paris Olympics, but eight sportspersons have secured fourth place. Sportspersons who finish in fourth place will definitely work to take their performance to a better position by finishing in the top three in the next Olympics," he said. India won 29 medals in Paralympics, up from 19 in the previous edition," he said.
"We intend to host the 2036 Olympics in India and we plan to be in the top 10 in the medals tally," he said. The 'Viksit Bharat Ambassador - Yuva Connect' was launched from Pune on the occasion. Under this initiative, interactions will be held with students of various colleges of Maharashtra to guide them on their responsibility towards achieving the goal of 'Viksit Bharat'.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thoughtfully planned for a developed India, and youth-centric decisions have been taken in the budget to fulfill this target," Mandaviya said. Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs Raksha Khadse urges students to register on 'My Bharat Portal' to contribute to a developed India.
Read also| Bangladesh have shown that they are a force to reckon with, says Sunil Gavaskar
