KATRA: Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) has made a significant accomplishment when it was given the Chairperson’s Choice – Sport for Social Good Award at the Sportstar Aces Awards-2024, which were hosted by Sportstar and held in Mumbai. This award is in recognition of the Board’s significant efforts to extend its support beyond religious realms. The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board’s chief executive officer, Anshul Garg, received the award from the Hindu Group’s chairperson, Nirmala Lakshman. A wide array of well-known athletes from all disciplines attended this yearly festival of sports and athletes.Anshul Garg, the Chief Executive Officer, accepted the award on behalf of the Board and thanked the Hindu Group. He also discussed the goals and purposes behind the establishment of the Sports Complex, noting that the Shrine Board, which has a strong commitment to societal betterment, established a comprehensive sports facility in Katra town in 2016 with top-notch coaching and training facilities in order to identify talent in the area and develop future athletes who will compete and win medals in various levels of competition.He continued by saying that this ongoing programme, which is led by Lieutenant Governor JK-UT Shri Manoj Sinha, has been supporting young people and giving them a stage on which to display their abilities. This demonstrates the Board’s dedication to promoting sportsmanship through competitive physical activities and has greatly contributed to the development of future national champions, as evidenced by the athletes who represent our nation at international events. The CEO also praised the accomplishments of Sports Complex’s Para Archers, three of whom will compete for India in the forthcoming Paralympic Games in Paris. He emphasised that the success attained at the games is reviving the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Sports Complex and the approximately 150 aspiring athletes who are receiving instruction in sports like archery, athletics, judo, and shooting. In a short period of time, the athletes trained in the sports complex have shown encouraging results in a variety of contests, taking home a hefty haul of 80 medals at the national and 12 at the international level. In recognition of the medals she won at National and International Sports Arena while shooting with her feet, Arjuna Awardee Paraarcher Sheetal Devi of SMVD Sports Complex won the Sportstar Aces Award in the categories for “Sportstar of the Year (female)” and “Popular Choice Award for “Moment of the Year” during the Award Ceremony.It is noteworthy that in October of last year, at her debut Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, the world’s first armless archer, Sheetal, earned a record three medals. Two gold medals in the mixed doubles and women’s solo categories, as well as a silver in the women’s doubles compound, were among the remarkable haul. Sheetal also won a silver medal at the World Para Archery Championships in Pilsen, Czech Republic, earlier in 2023. The top para competitor in the world, who also took home the gold in the compound open category at the first-ever Khelo India Para Games on December 16 in New Delhi, has his sights set on the gold in the forthcoming Paris Paralympic Games. It’s important to note that paraarchers connected to the Board not only earned gold in paraarchery competitions but also qualified for the Paris Paralympics in 2024.
