PANJIM: Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant along with Sports Minister, Sports Secretary of Goa and senior officials of the State on Friday unveiled the details about hosting the prestigious 37th edition of the National Games, on Friday.
For the first time in its history, Goa is poised to play host to the largest-ever National Games, featuring an impressive array of 43 sporting disciplines. The previous edition of the National Games, hosted in Gujarat, featured 36 disciplines, while Kerala’s 2015 edition included 33. It will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 26, at Pandit Jawaharlal Stadium, Fatorda.
The Chief Minister expressed his vision for Goa, stating, “We aim to create a thriving sports ecosystem in Goa. While tourists have long enjoyed our beautiful beaches, we now intend to attract sports enthusiasts from around the world. We’ve successfully hosted events such as Ironman, drawing athletes globally, and the world table tennis event with participants from 22 countries. With our state-of-the-art infrastructure developed for the National Games, we invite sports associations and national federations to utilise these facilities year-round for their events. Our goal is to take sports in Goa to new heights.”
The Olympic-style multisport event, featuring participation from 28 States and 8 union territories, is scheduled to take place from October 26 to November 9. The event will span across multiple venues throughout the State. Notably, cycling and golf will be held in Delhi. More than 10,000 athletes are expected to participate in the games. 49 percent of the athletes are women.
The 37th National Games will mark the debut of several new sports disciplines on the medal stage, including beach football, roll ball, golf, sepaktakraw, sqay martial arts, kalliyarapattu, and pencak silat. Additionally, yachting and taekwondo are making a return to the Games after their exclusion during the last edition. Moreover, to celebrate tradition, the sports of lagori and gatka have been included as demonstration sports, adding a unique and cultural dimension to the event.
Sports Minister Govind Gaude emphasised on the significance of this historic event.
