India target 2036 Olympics as PM Modi calls for mass talent hunt on 80th Independence Day
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "India target 2036 Olympics as PM Modi calls for mass talent hunt on 80th Independence Day")
India aim 2036 Olympics as Modi calls for mass talent hunt on Independence Day Photograph: (Others)
PM Narendra Modi announced a nationwide sports talent hunt during his 80th Independence Day address, setting sights on India hosting the 2036 Olympic Games.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated India’s interest and willingness to host the 2036 Summer Olympic Games. Speaking on India’s 80th Independence Day at the Red Fort in New Delhi on Saturday (Aug 15), PM Modi also announced a need for a nationwide talent hunt for sports.
Stressing the need to widen India’s Olympic footprint by identifying and nurturing raw talent from villages and cities across the country, Modi noted with regret that India doesn’t even participate in two-thirds of around 40 disciplines at the Olympic Games.
“There are around 40 sports at the Olympics, with around 325 to 350 events. You will be saddened to know, my fellow countrymen, my young people, I challenge you, I appeal to you, I seek your help: India does not participate in even two-thirds of these sports. We are not present; we do not qualify,” PM Modi said during his address to the nation on India’s 80th Independence Day.
Emphasising the need to excel in sports where India currently lacks a footprint, PM Modi urged a sharp shift in focus.
"We have decided that the 2036 Olympics should be held in India. But in 2036, in the disciplines in which India does not play today, in the disciplines in which India does not qualify, in the events that India has left aside, three-fourths of them are waiting for us. India will focus on them, and for this, we are also running a talent identification campaign.
“If we need athletes for 2036, then today, a talent hunt campaign will be conducted from village to village, city to city, school to school, to identify sporting talent. We have to focus on the children between the ages of five and fifteen, on our daughters. Their abilities will be assessed, and they will then receive specialised training to develop them into good athletes who can represent the country,” he continued.
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TOPS a Massive Success: PM Modi
As India readies to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, 20 years since last hosting it, PM Modi shed light on the bigger picture: the Olympics. Revealing how the government’s flagship Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) has been a massive success in providing support to the athletes, Modi said,
"India is making space for itself in the world of sports. We hear our national anthem frequently and see our tricolour going up very often. TOPS has achieved great success. Whether it is Khelo India Games, University Games, Beach Games, Winter Games, or sports training, sports medicine, sports nutrition, India is moving ahead at a great pace.
"India's performance is improving, and we are strong contenders to become an Olympic host in 2036. We are hosting the CWG in 2030," PM Modi noted.
