Kidz, it’s sportz at this village

Sportz Village, HSR Layout
Kidz, it’s sportz at this village
The Times of India

Bangalore: The catchline: “Creating champions in life.’’ Champions they create by teaching little ones to learn to win, to lose, to be a leader and to learn to see success in adult life.

Sportz Village in HSR Layout is quietly building a never-before sporting culture in the city. It’s a platform which provides children in the 5-15 age group a safe and wellequipped place to play and have fun. “Why not make sports a way of life in urban India,’’ asks Soumil Majumdar, director of Sportz Village, owned and operated by Junior Sports Services Private Ltd.

From the familiar to the unusual, the village offers varieties — two soccer fields, one cricket pitch of national standard, a practice pitch, a handball field, a volleyball court, a basketball court along with a rockclimbing wall and a jogging track. Outdoor adventure sports includes rock-climbing course, rappelling, river-crossing and overnight treks. So far, the village has 350 registered children as members. Five national coaches are on the rolls of the village that accommodates about 1,000 children from 6.30 am to 11.30 pm throughout the year.

Conceptualised in September 2003, Sportz Village initially had programmes for children but soon enough it launched a programme for corporates. It’s tying up with schools to provide after-school sporting activities for the children. The village is the brainchild of three professionals with corporate backgrounds united by their passion for sports. They say plans are afoot to replicate similar models in other metros as well. Summer camps and adventure activities are organised for children to provide allround exposure to sports. “The concept is a success; not just among children but their parents too, who soon started requesting Sportz Village to organise similar activities for themselves,’’ says Soumil.

“We want to transform the way both children and parents look at sports. Through sports, we want to teach life lessons and provide for character-building experience through team sports.’’ Watch out for cricket fest next month.