City warms up to host first-of-its-kind Int’l Sports Summit

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Billed as India’s first hybrid sports meet, with a diverse and vast schedule, the four-day International Sports Summit to be held in the capital city is a step towards developing a sports ecosystem in Kerala. Officials say the meet will feature several events including academic sessions where experts from various sectors in sports will present studies and papers; an investors’ meet; and a forum where start-ups will brainstorm on the various facets that still need to be explored. The event would pave the way for the state to develop a ‘Sports Economy’, a novel concept in the country that probably just a handful of countries consider as one of their prime missions.

The deliberations at the summit will go into the plan of the government to develop the sector as a priority one. The implementation will be on the lines of the Kudumbashree Mission and the literacy initiatives embarked upon by the state, say the officials. It will include creating an atmosphere of sports, taking it to the grassroots where the infrastructure will aim to spot and promote talent, an educational set up that has a huge presence for sports that could help create awareness and interest, etc.

Preparations are under way at the Greenfield Sports Hub in Thiruvananthapuram, where the summit will be held from January 23 to 26. The run-up programmes to the summit will start on January 12. One of the preparatory events is the Tour de Kerala Cyclothon and Road Show, which will kick off from Kasaragod and finish in Thiruvananthapuram on January 23, setting the stage for an action-packed summit.

Also on the cards is the much-anticipated K-Walk, a mega walkathon scheduled for January 22 themed ‘Kerala together for a single goal’. On January 23, the summit will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan amidst events such as a cultural performance fusing sports and art forms, and a sports-themed performace by a music band. The summit hopes to see the presentation of over 1,000 project proposals that aims to fetch global participation and investments to boost Kerala’s sports dreams.

The state’s new sports policy, said to be a pioneering effort, stresses on decentralised project planning and execution, with the establishment of panchayat/municipal sports councils as a highlight. The summit will also have conferences where 105 national and international experts will make presentations on 13 varied themes, deliberations and highlights of which will help fine-tune the sports policy and implementation. It will also be a ground for research paper discussions, startup pitches, exhibitions, and a healthy food festival, among others.

Also laying the foundation of a blue-print for developing strategies, the summit has scheduled master plan presentations by District Sports Councils and sports associations. The series of district summits and micro summits at the local-body level underscore the state’s intentions to usher sports development at the grassroots, the officials say. Summit will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan amidst events such as cultural performance fusing sports and art forms and sports-themed performace by a music band.

The run-up programmes will start on January 12. .