Here is why Bhopal is racing to become the next sports hub of India

Bhopal: It all started in 2019, when city's Upper Lake successfully hosted International Kayaking and Canoeing championship. The lush water of the Upper Lake provided an excellent platform to advanced Olympic-level Kayaks and other boats.

Forward to 2023 February, when Madhya Pradesh hosted 'Khelo India'. The games were majorly organised across eight districts, with maximum tournaments being held in Bhopal.

And after a brief break, from March 20, the capital city will host a 11-day Shooting World Cup.

Any guess, why Bhopal is racing to become the next spots hub? Well, we talked to a few experts and officials and they attribute it to advanced infrastructure.

For instance, the city's shooting academy is equipped with advanced shooting ranges including 10-meter, 25-meter, and 50-meter-- and is counted as one of the Asia's best shooting academy, with some other modern features underway. This new construction costs between 20 and 25 crores, informed joint director of Directorate of sports and youth welfare BS Yadav.

Similarly, Bhopal owns a magnificent MP State Equestrian Academy for one of the world's elite spots. And has several foreign-bred horses worth lakhs of rupees. Some of them are German-bred horses. The academy is equipped with arenas for different equestrian events, like cross-country equestrian jumping.

No, this is not it! The Tatya Tope stadium in Bhopal can host events during both--day and night, with floodlights surrounding the athletics track and huge multi- purpose indoor halls. It is the most equipped stadium in Madhya Pradesh.

When Free Press approach Olympian Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar in this regard, he simply said, "The only reason that MP is evolving in the field of sports is because of the infrastructure. When we go out for competitions, we realise how amazing facilities MP provides to its players. Now that MP is hosting the Shooting World Cup, I am confident that it will put MP on the global map."

Infact, recently, when Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur visited the city, he mentioned that Madhya Pradesh was given a chance to organise the Khelo India Youth Games 2022 on the basis of merit because of its world-class infrastructure and sports environment.

Apart from the state government-run academies, Bhopal also has the Sports Authority of India’s National Centers of Excellence (NCOE), where the best judokas of our country like Olympian Avtar Singh and Commonwealth Games medalist Vijay Yadav go for training.