The youngsters in the city are now more informed about sports: Danish Mujtaba
Danish Mujtaba (BCCL)
The Prayagraj born Olympian and Indian hockey player Danish Mujtaba, who has represented India in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and the 2016 Olympics in Rio, feels a lot has changed in his hometown in the past decade.
The midfielder, who is working as a Sports Officer in Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited at Shakti Bhawan says, “The Sangam city has given so many Olympians over the years. Today also, it has immense potential when it comes to sports. Things have improved in the past decade with institutions like Khel Gaon in 2013-14 coming up, and also the overall development of the city during the Kumbh has given a boost to sports in the city.”
He adds, “Having said that a lot needs to be done. For hockey players, the first need is the Astro turf just like Lucknow. Though the project was initiated for the same years back it still needs to be completed.”
Danish feels the awareness and interest of youngsters in various sports has increased in the past decade. “The city youngsters are now more informed and know exactly what and how they need to train in sports. I feel, if the youngsters are able to get a better counselling today, more and more will take up sports as their profession and they will be able to deliver at the highest level.”
Ask him how Prayagraj has contributed to making him an Olympian and he replies, “When your roots are strong, you can grow higher. For me, initial training at Islamia College laid my foundation. The college has been consistently producing excellent results for the past 40 years. And the best thing about the college apart from imparting basic hockey skills is that the players from this college who have made it big on the professional front, come back to teach here and share their experience. They teach the latest techniques, skills, or drills which they learned while playing big games. Whenever I am in town, I spend my evening with the hockey players there. It was because of this college and city that I could achieve this much.”
The Olympian envisions the Sangam city to be on par with Lucknow in the next decade as far as sporting facilities are concerned. “Just like Lucknow has four Astro turfs, world-class swimming pools, and other sporting facilities, I wish that my city also gets such sports infrastructure in the coming time. I also hope to see many youngsters making the city proud with their achievements.”
The midfielder, who is working as a Sports Officer in Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited at Shakti Bhawan says, “The Sangam city has given so many Olympians over the years. Today also, it has immense potential when it comes to sports. Things have improved in the past decade with institutions like Khel Gaon in 2013-14 coming up, and also the overall development of the city during the Kumbh has given a boost to sports in the city.”
He adds, “Having said that a lot needs to be done. For hockey players, the first need is the Astro turf just like Lucknow. Though the project was initiated for the same years back it still needs to be completed.”
Danish feels the awareness and interest of youngsters in various sports has increased in the past decade. “The city youngsters are now more informed and know exactly what and how they need to train in sports. I feel, if the youngsters are able to get a better counselling today, more and more will take up sports as their profession and they will be able to deliver at the highest level.”
Danish Mujtaba (BCCL)
Ask him how Prayagraj has contributed to making him an Olympian and he replies, “When your roots are strong, you can grow higher. For me, initial training at Islamia College laid my foundation. The college has been consistently producing excellent results for the past 40 years. And the best thing about the college apart from imparting basic hockey skills is that the players from this college who have made it big on the professional front, come back to teach here and share their experience. They teach the latest techniques, skills, or drills which they learned while playing big games. Whenever I am in town, I spend my evening with the hockey players there. It was because of this college and city that I could achieve this much.”
The Olympian envisions the Sangam city to be on par with Lucknow in the next decade as far as sporting facilities are concerned. “Just like Lucknow has four Astro turfs, world-class swimming pools, and other sporting facilities, I wish that my city also gets such sports infrastructure in the coming time. I also hope to see many youngsters making the city proud with their achievements.”
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