Space crunch plays dampener to city schools’ Olympic dreams

MUMBAI: With India shining at the Rio Olympics, many city schools are turning the spotlight on sports. The institutions, however, are facing challenges in the form

MUMBAI: With India shining at the Rio Olympics, many city schools are turning the spotlight on sports. The institutions, however, are facing challenges in the form of lack of space to train students and scepticism among parents who would rather have their children concentrate on academics, said educators.

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While, cricket and football are popular in school, only a few city schools have badminton courts or facilities for gymnastics. Also, the number of schools that have tied up with clubs or sports complexes is even fewer in number.

But PV Sindhu and Dipa Karmakar’s triumph in the recently concluded Olympics has brought the focus back onto these sports. Swami Vivekananda International Group of Schools in Kandivli and Gorai, which boasts of prominent cricketers as alumni, is planning to train students in gymnastics and athletics. “The Olympics made us realise that the country needs gymnasts and athletes and not just cricket and football players. Unfortunately, students are not getting any exposure to these sports at the school-level,” said Yogesh Patel, director of the group of schools.

One of the major reasons for this is scarcity of space and the lack of interest among students. “One of our students showed immense potential in gymnastics and so we have decided to support her and take the responsibility of training her,” said Patel, adding that they are trying to find for space to set up a gymnastics training centre.

NES International School in Mulund has collaborated with Prakash Padukone Academy to promote badminton among its students. They are also honing students in golf using an optic golf course projected on a screen. “Space is a major challenge for schools in Mumbai but we have been able to overcome this using technology,” said V Balasubramanian, the school’s director.

Many schools do not have the resources to invest in sports technology. Holy Cross School, Juhu, has stopped conducting sports events as they do not have a playground and cannot afford to rent a ground in neighbouring schools or sports clubs. The school has been requesting the government that an open space nearby measuring 90,912 square feet be rented to it, but to no avail. “Recently, one of the nearby grounds has been given to the police, while another has been turned into a joggers’ park,” said Larsen Fernandes, president of Juhu Angels, a group campaigning for more open spaces.

Schools are also fighting an ‘academics only mindset’, admitted educators. “Parents want children to excel in academics and sports. They want the schools to help them find the right balance, which is tough,” said Balasubramanian.

Father Francis Swamy, principal of St Mary’s School (ICSE) in Mazgaon, said, “Parents do not encourage students in taking up a career in sports unless it is cricket. We need to work on changing this attitude if we want more Olympians in the future.”