Army Sports Institute stadium to be named after Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra

PUNE The Indian Army has decided to name the stadium at Army Sports Institute (ASI), Pune, after Tokyo Olympics gold medallist in the javelin throw, Subedar Neeraj Chopra

PUNE The Indian Army has decided to name the stadium at Army Sports Institute (ASI), Pune, after Tokyo Olympics gold medallist in the javelin throw, Subedar Neeraj Chopra.

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Defence minister Rajnath Singh will preside over the naming ceremony at the institute on August 23. The stadium will be known as the “Neeraj Chopra Army Sports Stadium, Pune Cantt”.

Singh will also felicitate 16 Olympians of the Indian Army on the occasion.

After being recruited by the Indian Army under the sports quota, Chopra (23) from Panipat in Haryana, trained at the ASI, the premier sports training institute of the Indian Army.

The ASI was set up in 2001 under the Mission Olympics programme. ASI is a multi-disciplinary sports training institute. It imparts training in seven fields: archery, athletics, boxing, diving, wrestling, fencing and weightlifting.

Defence minister Singh will be on a one-day visit to Pune on August 23, when he will preside over functions at the Defence Institute of Advanced Technologies (DIAT) and the ASI.

Army chief General M M Naravane and Southern Army Commander Lt Gen J S Nain will also be present for the ceremony.