CHENNAI : Great Goals, city’s football and basketball academy for children between ages four-15 years, is back with their annual tournament, which will be held on December 15 and 16. This will be the academy’s fourth edition of the tournament. “The tournament was initiated in 2015 and was the first of its kind in the city for non-school/academy teams. It is, in fact, one of the most anticipated tournaments in the city,” shares Priya Gopalen, co-founder of Great Goals.
Great Goals was started by Priya Gopalen and Sandhya Rajen in 2013 with just about 40 children in the eight to ten years age category. Today, there are over 300 children in the sports programme.“From the maiden edition, we have ensured that the Great Goals tournament is conducted in high professional standards — from registration, starting the matches on time without any delays, bringing in referees from the Chennai Football Association to conferring awards to the highest goal scorer, best goalkeeper and most valuable player in each category, everything is thought through and meticulously planned. So, in a sense, it sets standards not only for fair play but also for professionalism. Children learn from what they see,” says Priya.
The tournament will see players from all over the city participate in the under-10, 11, 13 and 15 age groups in the league and knockout matches. “There are teams that come from far away places. We wanted every team to at least be able to play two matches…so, we not only have the knockout matches but also the league,” she shares.
Crediting their supporters, Priya says, “There are a few people who have supported the tournament from the first edition. Dr Agarwal Hospitals, Chaitanya Foundations and Sarada logistics, AGS, Tropicana, Decathalon and Kauvery are some of our sponsors this time,” she says.The earlier editions were a one-day affair where about 360 children divided into 36 teams across three age categories participated. But this edition is going to be different, says Priya. “During our earlier editions, we had about 70 matches in a single day. This time, we have spread the tournaments across two days. This way it will be more relaxed and fair for all,” she explains.(The Great Goals tournament will take place on December 15 and 16 at MK Sports arena, Nandanam. For details, call 9840053306)