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As the new season has begun to unfold at the Anantapur Sports Academy (ASA), the Hockey Academy has bid farewell to a whole bunch of talented athletes. These athletes have been an integral part of the ASA hockey team for quite a few years now, where these athletes have learnt, grown and developed over the years as athletes, mentors for their juniors and above all ambassadors for the ASA in all walks of life.
As many as 23 athletes out of 60 have left the ASA in April this year on account of two major reasons; most of them graduating from the ASA team and a few of them relocating for further studies and additional career options. There have been 17 girls and 6 boys who have bid farewell to the ASA.
After this the ASA has had selection trials to select some more, younger athletes that would take the outgoing athletes’ place to represent the ASA Under14 hockey team. The selection trials conducted have received a tremendous response with 127 athletes applying for the tryouts for a chance to hone their talent and skill level further. Out of the athletes who participated in the selection trials 70 boys and 57 girls showed up for a two-day selection trial camp that was held on the 29th & 30th of June 2015.
These athletes were assessed on the grounds of their Physical Fitness, Body Composition, Agility and Endurance, game skills and game vision over the two days of the selections. The first day consisting of their Physical attributes being tested extensively by an expert panel of selectors. The second day was more game related selection. Here the athletes were made to play games internally among each other to prove their metal.
The selection panel consisted of the Technical Advisor of RDT, Principal of the College of Physical Education at Nagarjuna University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, the Secretary Anantapur District Hockey Association along with RDT’s Sports Authority of India trained Coaches P. Laxmi Narayana and S. Anil Kumar who will be entrusted to overlook the progress of the selected athletes and train them further after their selection.
The results of these selection trials were declared late on the 30th of June 2015. The boys coach P Laxmi Narayana shared with us that “the selected athletes have been informed that they will have to report at ASA with their parents, where they will be briefed further about their future with the Academy. The athletes will be expected to stay on full time at the academy and train accordingly, apart from switching to the RDT affiliated schools in order to continue their education along with other ASA athletes”.
