Legendary Leander Paes joins hands with a Kolkata-based company to build sports infrastructure in Bengal
Leander Peas is a twenty-time Grand Slam winner. He is the first and only Indian to win a tennis medal at the Olympics.
Calcutta: Legendary tennis star Leander Paes has joined hands with a Calcutta-based real estate company in a strategic partnership with a keen focus on creating an environment that promotes sports as a way of life by honing emerging talent and creating abundant employment opportunities for former sportspersons through a series of centers of excellence in West Bengal.
The first joint venture project is to create an Olympic-level infrastructure with state-of-the-art training facilities under top coaches and systems with structured modules for different age groups across multiple disciplines. This will be India’s first multi-sport setup, complete with sports science, analytics, sports medicine and nutrition.
“I am excited about partnering with Shrachi to create an ecosystem that leverages sports for life, build the India of tomorrow and create jobs for more Indians,” said Leander, who has twenty years in his glittering career. has won Grand Slam titles.
The partnership is aware of its responsibility towards both sport and society and wants to invest in innovations, including support and development for top sport, but also for leisure and recreational sports. It also aims to combine application-oriented sports education with curriculum-based performing arts, especially theatre, literature, painting and local folk art.
The University will continuously promote interdisciplinary exchanges and close cooperation with various fields involved in the application of sports, encourage new academic talent and offer students specialized training in academically oriented career profiles.
Paes also envisions using sports as a catalyst for building more robust ecosystems within communities. His ambitious plan means he wants to reach 250 million Indian children in the next fifteen years. The partnership strategically focuses on a variety of sports including hockey, athletics, tennis, badminton and table tennis, in addition to the widely popular cricket and football.
At the heart of their strategy are grassroots-level coaching camps, led by former players, that foster a symbiotic relationship. This approach not only imparts valuable knowledge to aspiring athletes, but also generates employment for the players who have become mentors. This multi-faceted initiative is expected to open up a wide range of prospects for athletes in various sports.
A crucial aspect of their vision involves the development of a sports curriculum, further strengthening their commitment to promoting well-rounded sports education.