DDA to set up centres of excellence for sports; awards Asian Games medallists

New Delhi: The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has set the ball rolling to set up infrastructure-rich centres of excellence in its sporting facilities to provide intensive training to talented sportspersons preparing for Olympics and other mega events, the urban body said on Monday.

DDA Vice-Chairman Tarun Kapoor said this after felicitating and awarding cash prizes — Rs 5 lakh (gold medal) and Rs 3 lakh (silver medal) — to Asian Games 2018 medallists, who had trained at its sports complexes. "We are very proud of their achievements and the fact that they brought laurels for the country after receiving training at DDA sports complexes. I also hope that more such achievers will emerge in the future," he said.

Interacting with reporters at the Vikas Sadan here, Kapoor said, the DDA has also planned to tie up with the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) to make these centres of excellence valuable training grounds for talented players competing in the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games, the Asian Games and other big sporting events.

The proposed centres will be developed at existing sporting facilities as well as in those coming up in the national capital, he said. The DDA currently has 15 main sports complexes, besides three minor facilities, officials said. The major facilities include the Siri Fort Sport Complex, Yamuna Sports Complex, Squash and Badminton Stadium, Commonwealth Games Village Sports Complex, Chilla Sports Complex and the Qutub Golf Course. "The centres of excellence proposed at the existing facilities are — for shooting (10 metre air rifle/pistol) and tennis at the Siri Fort complex, table tennis and hockey at the Yamuna complex, badminton and squash at the Squash and Badminton Stadium, athletics and swimming at the Commonwealth Games Village, wrestling, weightlifting, boxing and judo at the Chilla complex, and golf at the Qutub Golf Course," Kapoor said.