The 4th edition of Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2021 was hosted by Haryana at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula, Haryana from June 4-13 2022. It was inaugurated by the Union Minister Amit Shah, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in the presence of Haryana Chief Minister (CM) Manohar Lal Khattar and Union Minister Anurag Thakur, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MoYAS), among others.
- The sporting events were held in five different cities viz. Panchkula (Haryana), Shahabad (Haryana), Ambala (Haryana), Chandigarh and Delhi.
- Haryana won the KIYG 2021 with 52 gold medals, followed by Maharashtra with 45 and Karnataka with 22.
- This was Haryana’s second KIYG title. It won the inaugural title in 2018.
Organizers:
It was jointly organized by the Haryana State Government and Sports Authority of India (SAI), MoYAS.
Sponsors:
For the 1st time ever, KIYG roped in sponsors. The State Bank of India (SBI) was the title sponsor of KIYG 2021 while Punjab National Bank (PNB) is Associate Sponsor.
Mascots:
The name of the Mascot for Haryana for Khelo India Youth Games-21 is ‘Dhakad’.The animal Cow is significant to Haryana, an agricultural hub of Northern India.
- The mascots for the KIYG are ‘Jaya’ the blackbuck and ‘Vijay’ the tiger.
Jersey:
The jersey is white in colour with the Khelo India Youth Games symbol spread across it.
Anthem
Indian rapper Raftaar compiled the song for the Khelo India Youth Games. It features a host of different Indian athletes and glimpses of the main event in the past.
Participants:
It is Largest ever contingent of 8500 players from across the country would participate in the 4th Khelo India Youth Games.25 different sports were conducted.
- Hosts Haryana had the biggest contingent at KIYG 2021 with 398 athletes, followed by Maharashtra (357).
- It is for the first time that all Indian States and UTs participated in KIYG.
Sports that made KIYG Debut: 5
Five indigenous sports viz. Mallakhamb, Gatka, Kalaripayattu, Thang-Ta And Yogasana
KIYG 2021 Medal Tally:
A total of 33 states won at least one medal at KIYG 2021 while 28 won at least one gold. A total of 903 medals were awarded at KIYG 2021.
Table showing Top 5 Winners:
| Rank | State | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Haryana | 52 | 39 | 46 | 137 |
| 2 | Maharashtra | 45 | 40 | 40 | 125 |
| 3 | Karnataka | 22 | 17 | 28 | 67 |
| 4 | Manipur | 19 | 4 | 5 | 28 |
| 5 | Kerala | 18 | 19 | 18 | 55 |
| 33 | Meghalaya | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Among UTs, Delhi topped the list with overall 6th rank. It grabbed a total of 79 medals comprising 15 Gold, 15 Silver, and 49 bronze.
Important Highlights:
i.Adil Altaf, son of a tailor, has made history for Jammu and Kashmir by winning first cycling gold medal in KIYG in the Boys 70Km road race.He also won a silver in the 28kms individual time trial.
ii.Weightlifter from Maharashtra, Harshada Garud broke the youth national record in the girls’ 45kg category by lifting 83kg to win the gold.
iii.Maharashtra’s Sanyukta Kale grabbed all the five gold medals in rhythmic gymnastics.
iv.Haryana’s Riddhi and Rajasthan’s Kapish Singh clinched girls’ and boys’ recurve archery gold respectively.
v.Haryana’s Shiva Narwal, a member of the title-winning air pistol team at the junior world championships 2021 in Lima, won the gold medal in the air pistol event.
vi.Haryana athlete Unnati Hooda, the youngest Indian badminton player to make it to the Uber Cup team clinched Badmintons Girl Singles Event.
vii.Punjab boys clinched coveted Boys’ Hockey Title while Girls Individual Time Trial 20 KM won by Chaitra Borji (Karnataka) in time of 32:51.84.
Prize Money:
The CM of Haryana has doubled the prize money for the winners from Haryana.
- Gold Medalists will receive Rs 1 lakh reward, Rs 60,000 to the silver medalist, Rs 40,000 to the bronze medalist and Rs 5,000 rupees will also be given to every player participating in the games.
- Earlier, gold, silver and bronze medal winners were given Rs 50,000, Rs 30,000 and 20,000 respectively.
Key Points:
i.The sports budget of India was increased to Rs 1992 crore in 2022 which was Rs.864 crore rupees in 2014.
ii.Star Sports Network has rolled out campaign #UmeedSeYakeenTak ahead of KIYG 2021.
iii.The Union Home Minister along with Haryana CM, after the inauguration ceremony of KIYG 2021, laid the foundation stone of several projects including Shri Guru Teg Bahadur Sahib Government Medical College at Yamunanagar, Government Medical College at Kaithal and construction of raw water supply channel by Haryana to the 2800 MW (Mega Watt) Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Pariyojna.
iv.A sports academy will be set up in Haryana to train players from across India.
- 1,100 sports Nurseries are being opened in Haryana to develop sports culture among the children.
Dignitaries at Closing Ceremony of KIYG:
Bandaru Dattatreya, Hon’ble Governor of Haryana was the chief Guest of Closing Ceremony. Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar, Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur, MoS Nisith Pramanik, MoYAS and other prominent dignitaries from Haryana.
Recent Related News:
i.MoYAS in collaboration with Department of Youth Services and Sports of
Government of Himachal Pradesh, sets up India’s first-ever Sports Authority of India (SAI) National Centre of Excellence (NCOE) to train athletes in Mountain Terrain Biking (MTB) and Bicycle Motocross (BMX) in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh.
ii.Ahimsa Vishwa Bharti (AVB) organization will establish India’s first World Peace Center in Gurugram, Haryana. The Center will work for the establishment of peace and harmony in the world.
About Khelo India:
KIYG, formerly Khelo India School Games (KISG) is the annual national level multidisciplinary grassroot games in India. It is the flagship event of the Indian Government’s Khelo India (Let’s play India) proposed in 2017.
- Under this movement, KIYG and the Khelo India University Games (KIUG) were set up as annual events where youngsters, representing their states and universities, respectively, showcased their skills and competed for medals.
