TIRUPATI: Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly Speaker Chintakayala Ayyanna Patrudu on Saturday stressed the need to effectively implement the sports quota to provide employment opportunities to talented sportspersons, besides linking sports with education and providing proper training and incentives.
Addressing the valedictory programme of the Amaravati Championship-2026, organised as part of National Sports Day celebrations at the SV University auditorium in Tirupati, Ayyanna Patrudu said parents often gave greater importance to academics despite their children showing interest in sports. “Education and sports should go together for a better future for children,” he said.
He called for incentives, training and employment opportunities for students excelling in sports.
Referring to a girl from his native Narsipatnam who underwent training at a skating rink developed there and later won a medal in Japan, he said the example showed that talent existed in every village and needed to be identified and nurtured. Sports and Transport Minister Mandipalli Ram Prasad said the government was also taking steps to establish a Sports City over about 500 acres in the Vijayawada-Amaravati region.
Mines and Excise Minister Ravindra said the government was focusing on identifying sporting talent at the grassroots level.
SAAP Chairman Animini Ravi Naidu said the government’s objective was to identify hidden sporting talent in rural areas and provide opportunities for them to excel at national and international levels. Paying tributes to Major Dhyan Chand, he said the government was committed to promoting sports across the State.
About 84,000 participants were selected from constituency-level competitions for the district-level contests, while 9,911 talented sportspersons took part in the finals, he said.
SAAP authorities distributed prize money of Rs 92 lakh to the winners of various events held during the finals. They also handed over an incentive cheque of Rs 25 lakh to former Indian hockey player and Olympian E Rajani in recognition of her contribution to the sport.
Tirupati Collector Dr S Venkateswar, Tirupati MLA A Srinivasulu and Sarvepalli MLA Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy also spoke.