Nationwide ASMITA athletics league to mark International Women’s Day at 250 locations
Under the ASMITA programme, a nationwide athletics league will be held at 250 locations on March 8 to mark International Women’s Day. The initiative aims to boost women’s participation in sports and identify talent across districts ahead of major global events
Hyderabad: In a unique initiative to celebrate women in sport, a massive nationwide athletics league at 250 locations will be held under the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports’ ASMITA (Achieving Sports Milestone by Inspiring Women Through Action) programme to mark International Women’s Day on March 8.
This was announced by the Minister of State, Mrs Raksha Nikhil Khadse, in Delhi on Monday.
“There cannot be a better opportunity to integrate our young women across the nation, and what better tool than using the ASMITA platform that is already gaining popularity across the country,” said Smt Khadse at a media conference held at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi.
ASMITA is part of Khelo India’s gender-neutral mission to promote sports among women through leagues and competitions. The Sports Authority of India (SAI) supports National Sports Federations in conducting Khelo India women’s leagues across multiple age groups at both zonal and national levels. Started in 2021, ASMITA leagues not only aim to increase the participation of women in sports but also to use the leagues as a platform to identify new talent across India.
So far, more than 2,600 leagues have been conducted across 34 sports disciplines in over 550 districts and 700 cities in the country. Significantly, ASMITA has reached the farthest corners of the country, including Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram in the North-east. It has also been held in areas that were once affected by Naxalism. More than 3,00,000 women have taken part.
The Union Minister said events would be conducted at 250 locations nationwide, focusing on athletics (100m, 200m, 400m) across the age groups of Under-13, 13-18 years and 18+ categories. Each venue will have five technical officials, 10 volunteers, one competition manager, one PCA (Past Champion Athlete) and a District Youth Officer. It is expected that a record 2,50,000 women will participate on a single day to mark International Women’s Day.
This initiative will be implemented in collaboration with MY Bharat, Khelo India Centres (KICs), the SAI ecosystem and NCOEs, State and District Sports Associations, as well as District Youth Officers (DYOs).
“The league will be organised in more than 30 States and Union Territories, including North-east States. The objective is to encourage more girls in villages and small towns to take up sports as a career, as envisioned by our Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Smt Khadse said.
As India prepares for the Commonwealth Games 2030 and pursues its ambition to host the 2036 Olympic Games, Mrs Khadse said, “We must understand that readiness begins at the district level. Hosting the Olympic Games requires more than infrastructure. It requires trained human resources in every district of India. It requires certified technical officials. It requires administrative excellence. This International Women’s Day initiative is part of that preparation.”
Each athletics event at the 250 locations will also include women technical officials, developmental workshops and an introduction to Athletics Federation of India-aligned officiating norms, as well as digital data upload and competition documentation training to ensure capacity building.
