While the nation celebrates the birth anniversary of Hockey Wizard late Major Dhyan Chand as National Sports Day the district, which has produced a number of sportspersons of national and international repute, rues lack of infrastructure, sports stadia or academies to help the talented youth train and hone their skills.
The sportspersons from the district have earned name and fame in their respective fields by the dint of their hard work.
The Khaleelwadi Sports Stadium in the heart of the city has given way for expansion of the Government General Hospital and the upcoming Government Medical College. The Archery, Wrestling and Athletics academies either were wound up or shifted to other places citing various reasons.
The other stadium, named after the then Finance Minister late G. Rajaram, built on a sprawling ground at Nagaram on the outskirts of the city, is not popular among the youth due to lack of facilities.
“The Rajaram Stadium is there only in name. Its pitch is not maintained and the buildings remain waste after academies were shifted. It has no floodlights and no sitting facilities. Sportspersons do not go there,” says Dakam Sailu, a retired physical director who also served as district Olympic Association treasurer.
International sportspersons from the district, including boxers like F. A. Samsuddin, Nikhat Zareena, I. K. Sam, Husamuddin and Syed Farooq, hockey player Yendala Soundarya, footballer Gaguloth Soumya, swimmer Navathe Srinivas and national archer Murali, could achieve a good name only with the encouragement of their respective sports associations, he said.
Probably no other district has as many sports associations as the district is having. Out of the 42 associations recognized by the Sports Authority of Telangana State the district has 31.
The ₹7 crore released by previous Kiran Kumar Reddy government for the construction of a new stadium has lapsed as it was not used, former chairman of the District Olympic Association B. Baga Reddy pointed out.
Stadiums for each mandal announced by the then Congress Government has not materialized, he said.
Sports associations and sportspersons are pinning their hope on the promise of Member of Parliament K. Kavitha that one general stadium for all with an estimated outlay of ₹9 crore and another exclusively for women with ₹3 crore would come up shortly in the district.
