Elavenil Valarivan
As the Asian Games conclude, India can look back with pride at the performances of its athletes, while reflecting on where we must improve. For those of us who compete, this is the rhythm of sport. Moments like these also invite us to acknowledge the people who have helped make our journeys possible.
As PM Narendra Modi completes 25 years in governance, his contribution to Indian sport deserves such reflection. Across his years as Chief Minister of Gujarat and Prime Minister of India, he has nurtured sporting ambitions with a consistency that athletes deeply value. He has encouraged participation, supported preparation and stood beside sportspersons through victory and disappointment. His interest extends to the long journey that comes before an athlete stands on a podium.
I clearly remember the first time I met our PM Modiji. It was during the opening of the Khokhara Sports Complex. I was a young child, already carrying the dream of becoming a sportsperson. Looking back, that memory connects my earliest sporting aspirations with a leader whose encouragement would accompany me years later, when I represented India.
Before leaving for the Tokyo Olympic Games, I interacted with him again. He remembered that I lived in Maninagar, his former Assembly constituency, and recalled the sporting facilities developed there. I was deeply touched that, despite the demands of his office, he remembered my connection to a place he had served. His pride in seeing a young athlete from his constituency prepare to represent India felt personal, and his encouragement strengthened my resolve to give my very best for the country.
When we met after Tokyo, he encouraged me to look at the positive side of the tournament and keep doing my best for the country. For an athlete, such words matter. When a competition does not unfold as we hoped, encouragement helps us regain perspective and return to training with renewed purpose.
What stays with me is that his support continued across those different stages of my life. The child with a sporting dream and the athlete returning from the Olympics both received encouragement to keep moving forward.
I have been part of Khel Mahakumbh, which Modiji championed as Chief Minister to promote sport and discover grassroots talent across Gujarat. He gave the initiative his personal attention and used his leadership to encourage wider participation. By placing sport prominently in the state’s public life, he helped make competition something that children, parents, schools and communities could come together around.
His promotion of Khel Mahakumbh carried a clear message: Gujarat’s young people should have opportunities to discover their sporting abilities. It encouraged children to step onto the playing field and families to take their ambitions seriously. For those with potential, it created an opening through which a passion for sports could be developed into a career in sports.
Every athlete needs that first opportunity. Before specialised training or international competition, there must be somewhere to play and someone willing to encourage you. Khel Mahakumbh helped create that environment, widening participation and bringing greater attention to talent across the state.
Modiji’s emphasis on chess in Gujarat reflected the breadth of this vision. Different children possess different strengths, and sport must give them room to discover those strengths. His encouragement of traditional sports similarly recognised the talent and sporting heritage present in our communities.
Over time, the ambition he nurtured through Khel Mahakumbh found a wider national expression through Khelo India.
Since 2018, more than 63,000 athletes have participated in the Khelo India Games, giving young talent opportunities to compete and be discovered. By establishing over 1,000 training centres, Khelo India has helped promising sportspersons to access the coaching, equipment and care needed to progress. Many of the Khelo India athletes now represent India internationally. This is how a strong sporting nation is built, by giving more young athletes the opportunity and support to become champions.
The underlying belief across Khel Mahakumbh and Khelo India has remained consistent: sporting potential must be discovered early and nurtured patiently. Young athletes need regular competition, coaching and support during the years when their future is still taking shape.
At the national level, the Target Olympic Podium Scheme has ensured that athletes receive world-class facilities and the support needed to compete internationally. TOPS has supported 233 athletes, including 52 para-athletes, with access to expert coaching, specialised equipment, foreign training and competition exposure.
For athletes and their families, this makes a practical difference. Preparing for international sport requires resources that families cannot always provide alone. Support that reduces this burden allows us to devote more attention to training and approach major competitions with greater confidence.
I was happy to read that the sports ministry’s budget has almost tripled since Modiji became Prime Minister. It reflects the sustained commitment of PM Modiji to give Indian athletes the resources they need. The value of that investment has become visible through better facilities, medical care, dietary planning, recovery support and access to specialists.
Khelo India centres and upgraded National Centres of Excellence have strengthened this foundation. The National Sports Policy and reforms in sports governance carry this commitment forward, while India’s ambitions to host major international competitions offer the next generation a larger horizon.
Some of Modiji’s most meaningful contributions to sports are also deeply personal. During the Paris Olympics, we struggled with the heat and the lack of air conditioning in the Games Village. Forty portable ACs were quickly arranged to ensure our comfort and help us rest and prepare properly. What touched us was that, when we met Modiji afterwards, he remembered the difficulty we had faced and asked us about it. Amid the many demands on his time, he had paid attention to something that directly affected our wellbeing.
When the men’s hockey team won bronze at Tokyo after a long wait, he reached out to celebrate their achievement. When the women’s team narrowly missed a medal, he reached out to them too, assuring them that they had won the hearts of the country.
Athletes carry their own expectations, their families’ sacrifices and the hopes of the nation. Falling short can be painful, especially when years of preparation are decided by the smallest margin. Encouragement at that moment helps us find the strength to begin again.
His personal messages, public recognition and references to athletes in Mann Ki Baat have also brought attention to disciplines that receive less coverage. Women athletes and para-athletes have been an important part of this engagement. This helps broaden the country’s understanding of sporting excellence and brings new role models into homes across India.
Across twenty-five years, Modiji has nurtured sporting dreams and stood beside athletes as they pursue them. I see that continuity in my own journey, from a child at the Khokhara Sports Complex to a champion wearing India’s colours. His encouragement motivates us to keep improving and give our best for the country.
As India aspires to host the 2036 Olympics and become a global sporting power, the spirit he embodies must inspire us all: keep believing in our athletes, keep backing their dreams and always cheer for Team India.
(The author is a prominent athlete who has represented India internationally)
