Minister Nara Lokesh hosted a dinner interaction with athletes selected for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games at his residence in Undavalli.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
Andhra Pradesh Minister for Education, Information Technology and Electronics Nara Lokesh has announced that the State government will establish a world-class Sports Centre of Excellence in collaboration with JSW Group, as part of its efforts to strengthen the sports ecosystem and nurture international-level athletes.
Speaking during a dinner interaction with elite athletes selected for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games at his residence in Undavalli on Friday (July 3, 2026), Mr. Lokesh said the government was committed to providing world-class training facilities, modern infrastructure and international coaching to sportspersons. He said a framework was being prepared for the proposed Centre of Excellence after JSW agreed to support the initiative.
The Minister held detailed discussions with the athletes on the challenges they faced, their training requirements and the government’s role in promoting sports.
Several athletes pointed out that Andhra Pradesh had once produced outstanding talent with the help of experienced coaches and a Centre of Excellence established in Guntur during the previous Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government. They expressed concern that many of those coaches were removed after the change of government in 2019.
Responding to their suggestions, Mr. Lokesh said policies supporting sports should remain consistent regardless of political changes. He assured the athletes that the government would bring world-class coaches to Andhra Pradesh and create an ecosystem capable of producing champions.
Highlighting the government’s initiatives, the Minister said sports training and education were receiving special attention, with plans to establish sports arenas in every district.
He noted that the Andhra Cricket Association was promoting multiple disciplines and stressed the need to create greater awareness among parents about encouraging children to take up sports.
He also pointed out that the government introduced a 3% reservation for sportspersons in last year’s DSC teacher recruitment, while government schools now observed “No Bag Day” every Saturday to encourage students to participate in sports and extracurricular activities.
Olympic medallist P.V. Sindhu emphasised the importance of advanced training technology and sports injury recovery facilities, citing South Korea’s use of robotics in archery coaching.
Mr. Lokesh said he had witnessed the use of AI in athlete training during a visit to Singapore Sports School and urged athletes to embrace emerging technologies. He informed that AI was already being used to assess health and fitness in government training programmes.
The Minister also announced that the government had released ₹2.23 crore for the training of 18 athletes selected for this year’s Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Para Commonwealth Games, assuring them of additional assistance if required. He encouraged the athletes to excel at the international level and bring laurels to both Andhra Pradesh and the country.
Published – July 04, 2026 04:23 pm IST
