Sports

Frequent participation in sports can significantly improve overall health, cultivate sportsmanship, camaraderie, and teamwork; encourage peer support and mentorship; magnify concentration, boost self-esteem, and alleviate stress and anxiety. It also serves as a strong deterrent against drug use and addictions amongst young people.

My record in the Maharashtra State Championship’s under-eight freestyle swim at age 7, reportedly a national record that stood for 26 years, amply testifies to my love and commitment to sports.

This understanding and personal experience with sports has driven me to promote physical activities among children through the Kavita and Vinod Khanna Foundation. In partnership with the Roundglass Foundation and The Art of Living, we sponsor and co-ordinate daily football coaching sessions for boys and girls—currently across 57 villages in Gurdaspur—to foster a culture of sports in the rural landscape of Punjab. Each participating village receives guidance from a trained volunteer, under the supervision of a level D/E coach, who coaches the children each evening. We provide all the necessary sports equipment for the kids. Every girl also receives her own football to encourage independent practice at home.

Looking ahead, my immediate objective is to extend this program to all villages within Vinod ji’s Lok Sabha constituency of Gurdaspur. To ensure comprehensive sports outcomes, we aim to incorporate volleyball and kabaddi into our program in the near future.