PANAJI
After multiple false starts, Goa inched closer to realise its quest to count itself among States that have hosted the prestigious National Games, tentatively expected to be held this year end.
A team of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) inspected some of the stadiums on Sunday and also held deliberations with Sports Minister Govind Gaude and other officials of the Sports ministry.
Gaude said, most of the infrastructure is ready but refurbishment as per the technical requirements of the each of the discipline will have to be done.
He was addressing the media along with the IOA team led by executive member Amitabh Sharma among others.
Goa was to host the 36th edition of the national games but it was snatched away and hosted by Gujarat last year after multiple defaults by the State in readying infrastructure to host the marquee Indian sports event.
The final dates for the edition however have not been finalised although tentatively November this year it is likely to be a few weeks after the conclusion of the Asian Games in China.
Meanwhile, Sharma said the event once hosted successfully by Goa could catapult the State as a major sports venue.
Between 7,000-8,000 athletes are billed to participate and an equal number of support staff, technical officials and organisers are expected to descend to the State for the event, Sharma added.
Sharma later led the IOA team on visits to some of the stadiums where they inspected the infrastructure. Based on this team's report, the PT Usha-led IOA is also expected to send a larger technical team comprising officials from the various federations to certify the competition-readiness of the infrastructure at all the venues.
The National Games is India’s own Olympic-style event where the country's top athletes across 30 disciplines compete. It's objective is to identify talent who could earn laurels for the country at international competition including the Olympics.
