JOVITO LOPES
jovito@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: More than 16,000 athletes and officials are expected to participate in the 37th National Games which will comprise 37-plus disciplines to be held in Goa in October-November, according to Amitabh Sharma, IOA’s Executive Committee member and Chairman GTCC.
The total number will be much higher once the new disciplines are added.
On being asked about the previous postponements and now about the guarantees that the event will be held finally, Amitabh said: “We went to check it. It is almost complete and minor works which are required will be taken up as there is sufficient time for its completion. The Government is working in full swing and hence there is no doubt about its sincerity. We have seen all that. They have the capacity. The officials involved in its organisation are competent. In the past there were problems concerning the infrastructure but now everything is almost complete.”
“The preparedness is way ahead with all venues that we inspected during our Goa visit, and almost ready for hosting the mega event. Only the technical requirements will have to be monitored now, the nitty-gritty of which will be undertaken by the Technical Committees of various federations that will now inspect the venues,” declared Amitabh.
“The total willingness of the Government to finally stage the event, which was postponed earlier several times, is something to be highly appreciated. While 37 disciplines are confirmed, there are some traditional or regional sports that will also find place in the Games. There have been requests from the Government and others to that effect, and these will be considered and finalised once the screening by the technical committee dealing with the new events is finalised,” pointed out Amitabh.
“It will be a different level of competition, much higher. Goa is a well known tourism hub. And, these Games will be the launching pad for Sports Tourism, what with Goa being acclaimed for its hospitality which is known the world over. These Games will be unique,” added Amitabh.
Meanwhile, the SAG has asked the associations which did not submit their proposals for organising the 90-day camps to finalise the training schedule, as the budget needs to be prepared and finalised for the approval of the Government. Only, about 50 percent of the associations had met the deadline of February 28.
The SAG is also preparing to float tenders for the refurbishing work of the athletic tracks at Bambolim and Pedem-Mapusa. The Bambolim track, which was built for Lusofonia Games in 2013, is virtually worn out due to sheer negligence in maintenance as it has not been watered regularly. The Peddem stadium is also in need of repairs.
The surface of the indoor stadium at Taleigao is also in need of some minor repairs at one or two places, while a new venue will have to be identified for weightlifting as the Savalvada Stadium in Pernem has been allotted for GMR of Mopa stadium fame and hence the stadium cannot be put to use for any sports activitiy.
The SAG will also have to deal with the problem of equestrian event, since there is no association in Goa catering to the sport. Then, there are at least four associations whose games are included in the Games but are not recognised. And, there are some associations which have not submitted their yearly activity as well as financial reports and also not renewed their registration with the Registrar of Societies which is mandatory to be done every five years.
That apart, several committees are yet to be set up by the Government.
