The Hindu : Sport : Big names for Military World Games

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jun 12, 2007
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Sport - Sports : General

Big names for Military World Games

Principal Correspondent

HYDERABAD: World judo champion Sophie Mondiere, European champions Stamislavs Olijars (110 m hurdles), Christina Bengstssan (shooting) besides the Olympic medallists Jereme Thomas, Vadims Vasilerris, N. Huizinga and P. Camella are some of the big names who have confirmed their participation in the fourth Military World Games to be held here from October 14 to 21, according to Lt. Gen. Aditya Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Command.

Overwhelming response

Briefing the media here on Monday, Aditya Singh said that 73 countries out of the 127-member nations and 3,181 athletes out of the expected 5,000, and 1,552 delegates had already confirmed their participation in the Games, which is said to be the second biggest show in the world of sport after the Olympics.

"The fact that 25 per cent of the athletes taking part in these Games are Olympic medallists speaks volumes of the intensity of the competitions that can be expected," he observed.

"We are optimistic of getting the infrastructure in place by August-end and we are pleased with the complete support of the State Government and it's various wings," remarked Mr. Singh, who is also a member of the Executive Council of the organising committee.

Showcasing the City

He also stated that the Games would not only showcase the organisational skills of the Indian Defence forces but also the historic Hyderabad City. "Having successfully hosted the inaugural Afro-Asian Games in 2003, we are optimistic of a similar response from the sports-loving fraternity of the twin cities for the Military Games too," he said.

"We will make concerted efforts to ensure that the average sports lover will not find any difficulty in watching the 15 disciplines as special buses will be run from different centres of the City to the venues," he explained.

The disciplines

For the record, the disciplines will be military pentathlon, shooting, parachuting, football, handball, volleyball, track and field, swimming, sailing, triathlon, judo, boxing, wrestling, hockey and kabaddi. Polo would be the demonstration sport.

"The reason why India is hosting the Games (for the first time outside Europe) is because of the growing stature of the Indian Army in the world scenario and also to enlighten the world about our capabilities on different fronts."

"Amidst the backdrop of the recent disturbances in the City, we are aware of the challenges on the security front and are getting ready to face them in appropriate manner," he replied to a query.

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