Goa-born Indian professional windsurfer Katya Ida Coelho will hand over the torch to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate the 37th National Games on Thursday, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Tuesday.
The five-hour-long grand opening ceremony at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda will feature performances by renowned artists, including Sukhwinder Singh and state’s Hema Sardesai, Sawant said.
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There will be an athlete’s parade of the 28 participating teams. The October 26-November 9 extravaganza are set to witness about 10,000 athletes across various disciplines.
There will also be 600 artists who will perform on the theme of the National integration, Sawant said.
The chief minister further said around 5,000 students would be part of the 12,000-crowd who will attend the inaugural ceremony of the National Games.
“The sports minister from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Odisha will be attending the inaugural event,” Sawant said.
“We were waiting to organise these Games since the year 2009. After 12 years, we are hosting these games,” he said.
”Goa has been hosting International events like the Film Festival but this event will be bigger than IFFI. About 10,000 athletes will participate in the event,” he added.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI)