Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the first-ever Khelo India University Games at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium on Saturday.
The Prime Minister will launch the multi-disciplinary sporting event through a video conference facility.
As many as 3400 athletes from 159 universities across the country will vie for top honours across 17 disciplines, including rugby which is among the six-team events.
Ace sprinter Dutee Chand, who is a student of KIIT, the host university, is excited to be part of the event.
“I may make the grade on the strength of my world ranking (currently no. 54 in 100m and no. 43 in 200m) but I really want to make it to the Olympic Games by achieving the qualification standard,” she said.
There are other talented athletes like Mangalore University’s triple jumper Jay Shah, his team-mate long-distance runner Narendra Pratap Singh, Pune University’s long-distance runner Komal Jagadale and Acharya Nagarjuna University’s sprinter Yarraji Jyothi, who can lift the quality of competition in track and field sport.