The fifth edition of the Champion In Me sports meet, an initiative aimed at eradicating stigma associated with children affected by HIV/AIDS virus, will be held here on Sunday.
Around 600 children affected by HIV/AIDS from various care-centres and support groups will compete in athletics, football and throw ball at the Sneha Care Home in Sarjapur.
The meet will be conducted by the Bangalore School Sports Foundation (BSSF), as part of its Red Ribbon Revolution.
International athlete Reeth Abraham, one of the brand ambassadors of the project, spoke about how sport can help improve self-esteem of children.
“In previous editions of Champions In Me, I noticed that these children compete with the same passion and skill as those who compete in State- or national-level meets. They can be as good as anyone else, they just need the right support and encouragement,” she said.
Elvis Joseph, director at BSSF, said, “We want to use sports as a platform to bring HIV/AIDS affected children to the mainstream. We started in 2009 with 20 children and since then, many other care-centres have joined us.”
Sea change
Preethi Anderson, a doctor who has worked with affected children and youth, spoke about the vast progress made in medical treatment.
“In 1998, we had to smuggle medicine to India from Europe as treatment was not available here. But thanks to the efforts of the Indian government, the National AIDS Control Organisation now provides free drugs to all HIV/AIDS-affected persons in the country. The challenge now is to provide good nutrition. All these factors, along with initiatives like this, go a long way in boosting the self-confidence of these children,” she said.
Former India hockey goalkeeper Ashish Ballal, actors Teena Ponappa and Rajshri Ponappa and Joint Commissioner of Police B.N.S. Reddy are expected to be present at the event.