Have to make sports a people’s movement

I am thrilled to see that the Khelo Bharat Niti 2025 incorporates, along with all the crucial ingredients needed to build a sports ecosystem that can carry India towards becoming a sporting powerhouse, the aspect of turning sport into a people’s movement.

- PV Sindhu

On the face of it, this may not sound as important as identifying talent, building sports infrastructure, creating transparent sports governance policies, etc. But the truth is that unless we involve the masses to participate in sports, no country can become a sporting superpower. The reason is that unless people feel attached to sport and think of it as an important aspect of their life and well-being, they will neither support their children to play sport at the grass-root or higher levels nor step out to support sport as fans and fill up the stadiums, which in turn brings in corporate sponsorships to fund sporting events and build careers for athletes.