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Pune, January 18: Indian volleyball legend and now coach of the national team, G.E. Sridharan is thrilled to be among the youngsters at the ongoing Khelo India Youth Games 2019. The man, who was a member of the Indian team that won a bronze medal at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, has been much sought after by youngsters at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex.
Players have been approaching him to seek advice and blessings and Sridharan has responded well by interacting with the players giving them guidance, motivation and sharing his experiences. “I never miss an opportunity to interact with youngsters” said Sridharan.
Extremely impressed with the enthusiasm and positivity at KIYG, the Arjun and Dronacharya awardee said, “Without doubt KIYG is a good initiative but what’s important is that it can prove to be a very good grooming ground for the U-17 guys to prepare for the big stage.”
Sridharan was full of praise for the Games, saying that players would be benefitted to a great extent. “Not only their own game, KIYG offers players an opportunity to meet the best talent from other sports too and add value to their experience. You see players and coaches from different disciplines, try to understand and interact with them which helps in shaping personal improvement too.”
According to Sridharan, the other big advantage is that by virtue of KIYG, players were getting a feel of the terra-flex courts. “At the international level matches are played on these courts and providing an international standard environment to these players will definitely enrich their experience.”
Many national level events are often played on open grounds which offer different playing conditions than what players get to while competing at the international level.
Excited about the future of volleyball after watching the talent on show here here, Sridharan feels the process of achieving a medal in the 2024 Olympics is on track. “We will be selecting players from KIYG 2019 to train them at the new academies coming up at Nadiad in Gujarat and Pathanamthitta at Kerala. The academies would offer state of the art infrastructure, facilities and coaching with an objective of grooming them for the international level.”
Sridharan, however, feels that in coming years, the KIYG should try to increase the number of teams. “It would be great to see teams from the east also becoming part of these Games.” Barring Chattisgarh currently no other team from eastern India featured at KIYG 2019.
“In Europe youth teams travel across the length and breadth of the continent to play. This not only helps them excel in the game but also contributes to a great extent in increasing their confidence levels too.”
Sridharan also dwelt on introducing a mirror reflection of this format so that players get more exposure and matches to develop their games.
Applauding the Union sports ministry and the Prime Minister for their efforts, Sridharan signed off with his motto. “DTP.” he said. “Discipline, Training and Performance is the mantra that I share with the younger generation. Be disciplined, train hard and perform to your best capabilities. Success is bound to follow."
