National Kabaddi championship from tomorrow

Vijayawada: The 51st Junior National Kabaddi Championship will be held under the aegis of the Andhra Pradesh Kabaddi Association from January 15 to 18 at the Sri Seetharama Gardens at Edupugallu of Kankipadu mandal in Krishna district. The four-day championship will witness participation from Kabaddi players across the country to show their talent for the Indian team selection. For this tournament, arrangements are underway at the Sri Seetharama Gardens at Edupugallu.

Andhra Pradesh Kabaddi Association (AKA) State General Secretary Yelamanchili Srikanth, along with the association representatives N Arjun Rao, KV Namacharaiah, and Subba Rao, are supervising the arrangements to ensure the smooth conduct of the championship.

Technical representatives nominated by the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India will supervise the conduct of the matches to ensure fair play and adherence to the rules. The matches will be held in both morning and evening sessions, with the evening matches conducted under floodlights.

Speaking to the media, AKA General Secretary Srikanth said that the championship would be conducted in the Under-20 category and would feature around 450 kabaddi players representing 29 States. Along with teams from various States, a team from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) would also take part, taking the total number of participating teams to 30, he said. Further, he said the matches would be held in a league-cum-knockout format. Several players who have represented India in international matches, as well as those who have participated in the Pro Kabaddi League, would be representing their respective States in the championship, Srikanth said. Also, he said that accommodation arrangements are being made for all players arriving from different parts of the country to participate in the championship.