Khelo India Water Sports Festival commences at Dal Lake with 400 athletes
The Khelo India Water Sports Festival (KIWSF) has begun at Dal Lake, featuring over 400 athletes from 36 states and union territories. Competitors will vie for 24 gold medals in rowing, canoeing, and kayaking. The event includes demonstration events like water skiing and dragon boat races. Athletes from Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Kerala are expected to be strong contenders.
ANI The inaugural three-day Khelo India Water Sports Festival (KIWSF) commenced at the iconic Dal Lake here on Thursday with over 400 athletes participating in the event, officials said. The athletes are competing for medals in rowing, canoeing and kayaking, and as many as 24 gold medals will be at stake over the next three days. To add to the glamour of the festival, there will be three demonstration events -- water skiing, shikhara boat spring and dragon boat race. The KIWSF will see 36 states and union territories in action. Among them, all eyes will be on athletes from Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Kerala. "Since Services will not take part in these Games as a team, it will be good to see how the states compete and perform. The course has been prepared keeping all international specifications in mind and we are all set to go," competition manager, Bilquis Mir, a former World Cupper canoeist and an Olympic judge, said.
KIWSF is a new addition to the Khelo India calendar. In 2025, two new events have been added. The Khelo India Beach Games took place in Diu in May. As per the Khelo Bharat Niti, both the Water Games and Beach Games are aimed at promoting sports and attracting tourism. For kayaking and canoeing, the last nationals held at Tehri (Uttarakhand) in November have been used as a qualifier. The top 15 in singles and doubles and the top eight fours will be participating in KIWSF. For rowing, the top eight from the nationals held in Bhopal in March this year will take part, officials said.
There will be international flavour as well. Arjun Lal Jat, an Army rower who will represent Delhi, will be one of the main attractions. Jat, 28, has taken part in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and won silver in the light-weight double sculls at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. The games will see almost equal representation from men and women. Of the 409 athletes competing for medals, 202 will be female. Madhya Pradesh (44), Haryana (37), Odisha (34) and Kerala (33) will have the largest contingent at KIWSF 2025. Gujarat, Puducherry and West Bengal have the smallest teams, officials said.
The water sports festival is the second Khelo India event in Jammu and Kashmir after the Khelo India Winter Games held in Gulmarg.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
33 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Srinagar's Dal Lake hosts first-ever Khelo India water games with eyes on talent for Olympics
The picturesque and iconic Dal Lake in Srinagar on Thursday (August 21, 2025) hosted the first-ever races under rowing, kayaking, and canoeing categories under the Khelo India Water Sports Festival, with an eye on improving the rank in water sports at the Olympics in the coming years. At least 409 athletes from 36 States and Union Territories (U.T.s) are participating in the water sports events, competing for 24 gold medals over the next three days. Of the 409 participants, 202 are female athletes. Madhya Pradesh has sent the largest contingent of 44 athletes, followed by Haryana (37), Odisha (34), and Kerala (33). 'The waters of the Dal Lake offer the same setting as in Europe. It's going to unmask talent in J&K as well as across the country. Water sports have 16 medals in the Olympics and remain the key to bettering our ranks at the international platform,' Bilquis Mir, who became India's first jury member in the Olympics in 2025, said. India ranked 71st at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Khelo India Water Sports Festival 2025 is also the first consolidated open-age category championship, where all 14 kayaking and canoeing events and the 10 rowing events are Olympic events. Ms. Mir, the Competition Director for the first Khelo India Water Sports Games, termed the holding of the water games in Srinagar as a shot in the arm for local athletes. 'The event will boost water sports in Kashmir and provide a platform to local talent,' Ms. Mir said. On day one, Mohsin Ali, a local, won gold in the 1,000-metre canoe race. 'I started water sports in 2017, preparing and have been eyeing to win gold. I attended a 20-day special camp under Ms. Mir for the event. My hard practice has earned me the prize,' Mr. Ali said. Balaji Maradapa, president of the Rowing Federation of India, said the venue chosen for the Khelo India Water Sports is the best thing to happen for local athletes in Kashmir. 'I have been tracking the athletes of Kashmir for many years. They are nice and have a big make. With proper training, local athletes have the potential to top rowing and kayaking in India,' Mr. Maradapa said. Olympian Arjun Lal Jat, who represented India in 2020 and won a silver medal in the 2023 Asian Games, also sees unattended potential in Kashmir. 'In the coming years, Kashmiri athletes will make it big,' Mr. Jat said. With athletes coming from Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Kerala, and other States, Ms. Mir said, 'The course has been prepared keeping all international specifications in mind.' The Khelo India Water Sports Festival is a new addition along the lines of the Khelo India Beach Games held in Diu in May this year. Raksha Nikhil Khadse, Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports, said, 'The government is committed to providing world-class facilities, training, and platforms like Khelo India to empower athletes nationwide.' J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said water sports and Dal Lake share a special bond. 'Through Khelo India Water Sports, this bond has been given a new colour. You may have heard it many times, but it is true, winning is not everything; participation is most important. We hope we are able to host you well.' Meanwhile, Ms. Mir said the three-day event will also boost tourism. 'These sportsmen will become ambassadors to the rest of the country,' she said.
The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
Jammu and Kashmir teenager Mohsin wins first gold of Khelo India Water Sports Festival
The inaugural edition of the Khelo India Water Sports Festival (KIWSF) got off to a sparkling start with a local shikarawalla Mohsin Ali, winning the first gold medal of the Games. Mohsin, a 17-year-old who also works as a shikarawalla in the Dal Lake, clocked 4:12.41 in the 1000m men's singles kayaking race to win his first national-level gold medal ahead of Odisha's Naoram James Singh (4:14.68) and Mayank of Madhya Pradesh (4:23.28). Two more gold medals were decided in the canoeing and kayaking competition. Vishal Kumar of Uttar Pradesh won the top prize in the canoe singles. For the 1000m race, Vishal clocked 4:30.59. Krishna Jat of Madhya Pradesh (4:31.36) got silver while Mohammed Hussain of Jammu & Kashmir got the bronze with a timing of 4:32.83 seconds. 'There is a lot of difference between participating in a water sports event in Uttar Pradesh and in Jammu and Kashmir due to the difference in altitude from sea level and it causes breathing issues for those from the plains. But I was able to negotiate that and win gold,' said Vishal. In the day's only final for women, Odisha's Rasmita Sahoo won the gold in 200m canoe singles event, clocking 53.53 seconds. Kerala's Nakshathra Santosh (53.83) and MP's Masuma Yadav (54.26) won silver and bronze. Earlier in the day, Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya declared the event open through a video message. The opening ceremony was attended by the Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports, Raksha Nikhil Khadse. The Lieutenant Governor of J&K Manoj Sinha, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, and J&K's Sports Minister Satish Sharma were also present. The three-day event, ending on August 23, will see more than 500 athletes from 28 States and Union Territories taking part in five events. While rowing, canoeing and kayaking will have 24 medals up for grabs, shikara sprints, Dragon boat race and water skiing will be the demonstration events. Published on Aug 21, 2025
News18
2 hours ago
- News18
Payas Jain sets sights on Olympic medal for India in Table Tennis
New Delhi [India], August 21 (ANI): Former International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Youth World No. 1 (U-17) Payas Jain has expressed his aspiration to win a medal for India at the Olympics, aiming for a historic achievement in the 2028 Summer Olympics are scheduled to be held from July 14 to 30 in the United States.'My ultimate goal is to win a medal for India in the Olympics. And for that, I have small milestones, and I believe we can do it. India is doing great right now, so it is possible that in the next four to five years, India will be there," Jain said, while speaking to ANI. Payas Jain said that table tennis in India has gained considerable popularity in recent years, crediting the success of Indian athletes on international stages for the growing interest in the veteran paddler Sharath Kamal clinched a gold medal in the men's singles event at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in year, India's three-time Olympian and Commonwealth Games medalist Manika Batra scripted history at Saudi Smash as she became the first Indian singles player to reach the quarter-finals of a World Table Tennis (WTT) Grand Smash event – the sport's equivalent of tennis Grand Slams. 'I think now table tennis has become quite popular because of the medals we have won before. In the past few years, we have won Commonwealth gold medals. Manika has done a lot of things for our country as well as in Asian we have got a medal," Jain said. However, the young paddler acknowledged that bringing table tennis to the popularity level of cricket in India would be challenging.'But of course, to get to the cricket level, it's going to be a lot of difficulties and challenges because it is an established sport. But I think table tennis is doing pretty well," Jain concluded. (ANI)
