Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports, lauded the sportspersons for their contributions to Covid-19, in a video conference with table tennis coaches of Sports Authority of India on Wednesday.
"They (sportspersons) have made huge contributions not just financially. But also for creating awareness among youth about Covid-19, and for putting up videos on fitness. All this shows how active sportspersons are. Hopefully, we don’t have to wait long for sporting action [to get back]," said Rijiju.
He said Indian paddlers will definitely win a medal at the Olympics and the World Championships. “If we can win a medal [two bronze] in the Asian Games (2018) there is no reason why we cannot win a medal in bigger events,” he said.
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Exhorting corporates to back TT, Rijiju said post-Covid-19 he will do his best to ensure that the next edition of Ultimate Table Tennis League has more support. “We’ll have a UTT that is grand, with more support, where we will have fully-packed stadiums,” the Sports Minister said.
There will be full support in terms of providing coaches and intensive training.
Targeting the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Rijiju said, "We have a clear target that might be called ambitious. We want India to be in the top 10 in the [overall] medals tally. We will do it. We have huge potential."
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