Pic caption (left to Right): World No 30 Gnanasekaran Sathiyan, Namita Chandel - India's highest finisher ever (19th) at Canoeing World Championships 2019 in Budapest Hungary and Para Athlete Anandan Gunasekaran at the media interaction during the GoSports Athletes Conclave in Courtyard by Marriott here on Saturday.
14th December, Mumbai: GoSports Foundation, a national-award-winning non-profit organisation, based out of Bangalore, conducted the fourth-edition of their Athletes’ Conclave for their 130 athletes across sporting disciplines at the Courtyard by Marriott, in Andheri, to raise awareness about the importance of Athlete Well-being and the ways it can be accomplished in order to improve their life holistically.
The Foundation has been at the forefront of initiating discussion, programs, and services aimed at promoting the well-being of athletes and injecting positivity into the Indian sports ecosystem. The Athletes' Conclave is one such initiative that is conducted every two years to enable a gathering of various members involved with Indian sport including athletes, coaches, experts, and officials and encourage discussions around relevant topics in the sporting ecosystem. In a rare occasion, 60 of India’s emerging and elite athletes across disciplines and 15 senior coaches were brought together under one roof making it an interesting mix between the young and the old.
Table Tennis Star Ganasekaran Sathiyan who is one of the key GoSports Athletes said, “ GoSports looks at sports in a more process oriented way and they have introduced me to a mental conditioning coach and they have put more emphasis on diet and other aspects outside the game which has helped me improve my overall game”. When asked about the teams chances for Olympics he added, “ We are currently ranked number 8 and with the way everyone is playing we are very confident of making the cut”
Deepthi Bopaiah, Executive Director of GoSports Foundation speaking during the session said, “the dearth of information and lack of awareness made it all the more critical to have a Conclave addressing the theme of Athlete Well-being. The athletes are generally very self-aware and attune with their bodies, however, peace of mind, self-reflection, mental and emotional well-being are critical aspects that are neglected, thereby affecting their performances & general living without their knowledge. This is also one of those rare-events where we bring together athletes from the Olympic & Paralympic disciplines, and making it part of mainstream conversation”.
“The highlight of the conclave was the inclusion of the coaches as it has a trickle effect which they can pass over to the athletes they mentor beyond the scope of GoSports Foundation as well which helps develop the sporting ecosystem as a whole. The new generation of athletes are receiving support in a holistic manner. Sports Sciences has evolved in the country now with multiple experts in the country available for the athletes. The country has definitely evolved, and with GoSports Foundation taking an initiative to educate the athletes & coaches about well-being we can be sure to say the needle is definitely shifting in the right direction,” said John Gloster, Head of Sports Sciences at GoSports Foundation.
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