AMERICAN UNIVERSITY ATHELTICS AND INDIA'S SPORTING POTENTIAL

“If you want to do something, achieve something, you can’t be thinking all the time of what you don’t have.” – Kapil Dev

A college-based sports system could be an excellent way to transform our country into a sports-loving society. Our current emphasis on academics is primarily owing to the fact that sports as a professional option requires abandoning schooling. With professional sports, with the exception of cricket and, more recently, football, paying almost little money in a professional atmosphere, sport is sometimes limited to being played as a pastime rather than a job.

The implementation of a collegiate sports system in India might assure that people who pursue athletics have the ability to acquire a college degree, removing the fear of a lack of viable job options. Sports such as hockey, basketball, and kabaddi would have a well-established league in a collegiate system, not only fueling our Olympic teams, but also providing the nation with a steady supply of skilled athletes to professional leagues, improving the overall quality of our national and local talent.

In India today, there are about 700 universities, all of which compete for a huge number of enrolments. Some of the wealthier institutions sell themselves by releasing adverts in print and on television. These advertisements are incredibly expensive and are most likely not the reason why most students enrol in a university to study. However, if these funds were spent on providing good sports infrastructure and professional coaches, universities could compete against each other in various sporting events, contribute to the nation's sports frontier, and gain publicity by performing well in competitions and being mentioned in the news media.

One of the most significant risks of launching a new sports league in India is the uncertainty of attracting a dedicated following. In a collegiate sports system, however, students and graduates of the relevant university can be the dedicated audience who attend the games on a regular basis, with their friends and family members tagging along. As a result, with a little marketing, these university teams can establish a more committed fan base for some of the lesser-known sports. The American Collegiate Sports framework would be an ideal example for India to follow in developing a collegiate sports system to support all sports in our country.

Written by

Akshay Singh Rawat

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