The Union Sports Minister Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore stressed the importance of science and medicine in improving the performance of the athletes and helping them in rehabilitation and recovery. The Minister was addressing the gathering in the inaugural International Conference of Sports Science SAICON at the Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.
Rathore, a silver medallist in the Athens Olympics, hoped that the conference, attended by about 1000 national and international delegates, would inspire students, researchers and educationists to take sports science to the next level.
The Sports Minister also announced that efforts were on to make a provision to recognise and reward coaches who guide an athlete through different phases of his or her career. He said that the cash award given to the coaches when an athlete wins an international medal could be shared 20 per cent by the grassroots level coach and 30 per cent by developmental coaches at the academies.
Speaking on the Khelo India National School Games to be staged from January 31 to February 8, for the under-17 age group, Col. Rathore said that it would be followed by the College Games for the under-21 age group.
The School Games would fetch 1000 athletes a scholarship of Rs. 5,00,000 every year for the next eight years, and the pool would be enhanced by 1000 athletes every year.
Among other leading sportspersons, Atlanta Olympics bronze medallist Leander Paes, Sydney Games medallist Karnam Malleswari, Beijing Olympics medallist Yogeshwar Dutt, captain of the Moscow Olympics gold winning hockey team, V. Baskaran, a member of the Munich Olympics
bronze winning hockey team, Dr. Vece Paes, were present at the inauguration.
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