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Puma, along with Nielsen, has published a survey that found a complementary link between studies and sports. It goes on to highlight that a large majority of the Indian population – whether children or adults, falls well below the WHO-prescribed minimum weekly exercise levels. Based on these findings, the German sports brand has launched an ambitious "Let there Be Sport" movement, which seeks to destigmatize sports.
In this exclusive interaction with Sportskeeda's Business of Sports (BoS), Abhishek Ganguly, Managing Director of Puma India and Southeast Asia, said:
"Our intent is very clear that we want people to be aware that sports is important for life."
Ganguly spoke with BoS after hosting two back-to-back "fireside" conversations with Puma athletes – Virat Kohli and Sunil Chhetri.
Puma India MD Abhishek Ganguly on sports and their importance in students' physical fitness
The Puma x Nielsen research report – conducted among 4280 respondents spread across 16 cities and ranging from 18 to 65 years in age – concludes that only 20% of adults meet the WHO-recommended 150 minutes of weekly exercise. What’s even worse? Indian kids, on average, spend only 86 minutes as against the prescribed 420 minutes per week on any physical activity.
This is the second edition of this dipstick study, which was first commissioned in 2018. Ganguly pointed out that the percentage of adults claiming to have participated in some sports or physical activity in the last 12 months, has in fact improved from 54% five years ago to 68% now.
Explaining the rationale behind conducting the study, Ganguly said:
"Yes we know we are seeing more people play more sport, not just cricket…But there has to be some kind of a benchmark. Data doesn’t lie…we saw direct correlation between sports adoption and academic performance."
Puma study: Just the starting point
Ganguly is aware that a private study commissioned by Puma alone isn’t going to change existing perceptions that relegate sports to extra-curricular activity in schools.
"We did our part…This research is not intended to take business decisions. This research is to understand the state of sports and fitness and also at a broad level have certain insights which reinforces it to people the importance of sports and it ratified."
When asked about what policy changes he would like to see at the government level, he noted:
"An ideal situation would be that overall there is sports and fitness and physical education as a subject. Maybe…we will make Virat Kohli chat up with someone who is…a part of the government."
As things stand, sports is still seen as a ‘digression’ from academics in India. Ganguly is optimistic that with legends like Chhetri and Kohli lending their voice to this movement, sporting pursuits can be viewed more favorably, especially by parents who are “very important decision-makers and a very important support system.”
Confirming that his company will continue piloting such surveys every couple of years, Ganguly said:
"While we can have changed researched questions, we [will] keep one question the same: [in the] last 12 months, how many days have you trained, on a broad level, and how many hours have you trained per week?"
In the immediate future though, expect to see more Puma awareness campaigns ranging from on-ground to digital, aiming to inspire adults and kids to play more sports
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