Pokhara, August 10: As preparations are underway to host the 13th South Asian Games scheduled for March, 2019, an air of excitement is seen gathering pace in Pokhara with the expectation of organising more than five sports in the local Lakeside.
This is the first time that any regional level sports competition is being held in Pokhara and this has been taken as a great opportunity with the Lakeside increasingly being the major attraction of tourists. Nepal will host the games with various 25 types of sports on offer. The 12th SAG was held in Guwahati in India.
The enthusiasm of Pokharelis for the games has further heightened when Minister for Youth and Sports Rajendra Kumar KC on Tuesday inspecting the Pokhara Stadium, the venue for the SAG games. Minister KC directed office bearers of the District Sports Development Committee (DSDC) to build infrastructures for the sports.
“We are trying to develop Pokhara as sports city. More than five games may be organised in Pokhara by the standard of available infrastructures,” said the Ministry’s Spokesperson Ram Prasad Thapaliya he added.
The National Sports Council has already proposed to hold various five games in Pokhara. The proposed sports include volleyball, handball, women’s football, archery and triathlon. “It has been almost finalised to hold the games in the Lakeside,” said member-Secretary of the Council Keshab Bahadur Bista.
Additionally there is possibility to hold other games like badminton and long tennis, he added.
Infrastructures have almost been developed for holding volleyball, handball, archery and triathlon, said Chief of the DSDC Prakash Baral. In case for women’s football, existing structures should be dismantled and a new one built for the sport, he said.
