Mumbai: Indian hockey legend Dhyan Chand who was also known as the magician of the game will be remembered for the dramatic comeback in the final of the 1936 Berlin Olympics against Germany. Every year on August 29 ‘Dhyan Chand Jayanti’ – the birth anniversary of the Indian hockey legend, is celebrated as ‘National Sports Day’, across India.

On this day, paying homage to the hockey icon, who has shown the world that rising out of adversity is possible as there is a magic in each one of us, and in the loving memory of the International volleyball player Late Mr. Jahangir Shaikh, Salaam Bombay Foundation in association with Aarya Studio and PEFI (Physical Education Foundation of India), jointly organised a virtual sports quiz competition for over 500 students from municipal and government aided schools of Mumbai. The marathon online quiz lasted for two days, 28th and 29th August 2020.

A digital web link was shared with all the participating students on WhatsApp and they were asked questions related to Cricket, Football, Hockey and Volleyball. The participating students have received E-certificates and the top 10 students – 5 girls and 5 boys have been awarded with sports kits, based on their respective sport. All the sports kits have come as a generous donation from Late Mr. Jahangir Shaikh’s family.

Speaking about the occasion, Mr. Gaurav Arora, Vice President, Sports – Salaam Bombay Foundation said, “Apart from academics, we are aware that it is through sports and play that students learn to explore, invent, create, develop social skills, express emotions, and gain confidence. Considering the current pandemic situation, where physical connectivity has been a challenge, we decided to engage our students virtually on the occasion of National Sports Day to keep them mentally involved and at the same time boost their morale in these testing times. At Salaam Bombay Foundation, we strongly believe that to fight the pandemic, physical fitness and mental strength through life skills, is vital for all the students.”

Dr. Nisar Hussain – Secretary, Physical Education Foundation of India, Mumbai commented, “We have been looking forward to a collaboration with Salaam Bombay Foundation as we admire their work with the resource-challenged adolescents. This year, we are happy that we could organise the Sports Quiz Competition with the students of the Foundation’s Sports Academy, on the occasion of National Sports Day.”

Salaam Bombay Foundation’s Sports Academy uses sports as a medium for change. Over the years, the foundation has used sports training to teach adolescents leadership, discipline, teamwork and goal setting. The academy has given secondary school students access to international tournaments, higher education through sports scholarships, internships at multinational companies, and the ability to pay their way through school and college through part-time jobs as coaches, scorekeepers, umpires and more. During the pandemic, the academy has incorporated fitness and yoga sessions along with sports skills for students to be mentally and physically fit. Pre and post skills & fitness assessments are also being monitored to capture students’ progress.

Based on an internal survey conducted with parents and students, Salaam Bombay Foundation has designed this academic year in two segments – Digital Learning and On-Ground Training. The ‘Digital Learning’ module will comprise of 40 hours in Football, Hockey and Cricket and the ‘On-ground’ training module will comprise of 32 hours adhering to social distancing protocol as laid down by the Sports Authority of India. The on-ground competitions have now been replaced with digital fitness challenges and basic sports skills like yoga, physical fitness, life skills, assessment and guest lectures are the core strands of sports training at the Foundation’s Sports Academy for the period of 2020-21.