The Mahila Seva Samaja School in Basavangudi opened its brand new state-of-the-art badminton courts to the public on 15 February. The famous badminton player Prakash Padukone inaugurated the facility.
Previously the school housed one single badminton court in its old auditorium, which was demolished to build two new courts in the sports and cultural complex of the school Members of the Mahila Seva Samaja, the school children and other ladies in the vicinity of the school have been utilising the facility as members since its inception in 1959. Of the two new courts, one is reserved for coaching and the other is for member use.
The inauguration was held in the new auditorium, and was packed with enthusiastic kids and faculty. Padukone, based in Bangalore, won several state, national and international level titles during his professional career, and after retiring in 1991 he went on to become the Chairman of the Badminton Association of India. He has also coached the Indian National Badminton Team in 1993 and 1996. On October 1994, he launched the prestigious Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy in Bangalore with like-minded badminton laureates Vimal Kumar and Vivek Kumar.
Padukone handed out certificates and prize money to students who represented the school in state and national level competitions and won in the presence of their classmates. Certificates were distributed for events like swimming, volleyball, tennis, shuttle and ball badminton with prize money varying from Rs.500 for National level competitions and Rs 300 for State level competitions.
Some of the students awarded were Karthik R for National level ball badminton, Suraj R N for National level Shuttle, Savitha R N for State level swimming, Ayush Udaya for State level Volleyball and many more.
The Award ceremony was accompanied with the sounds of lively cheering and clapping by their classmates and friends. Padukone, the High School Principal Usha Rao, members of the faculty and the students looked on while some of the children performed. The children changed into costumes and performed dances and yoga for the function; one hit in particular being the song "Chak de" from the movie Chak De India.
The present badminton courts are open to the public - children, women and boys under the age of 16. The membership fees are priced at a one-time payment of Rs 10,000 or monthly fees of Rs 250. There will be a professional coach to teach badminton for those who are interested.
The Mahila Seva Samaja School Campus is located on K R road in Basavanagudi and the badminton court opens on to the Pampamahakavi Road.
(You can find the original link to the article here)
Tireless feet take her far
It was an uneventful lazy Sunday evening which took a turn for the better when I met up with Nischal Pai at a coffee shop in Indira Nagar. Nischal Pai is a Bangalore-based marathon runner who just completed the 42 km Bombay Marathon held on 20 Jan 08.
It was when Nischal was at Pune in 2000 pursuing her Masters degree that she started running. The motive: it was the most inexpensive way to lose weight! She was first introduced to the world of marathons by a colleague at work who told her about the Bangalore marathon way back in 2005. She started training to attempt the 21 km half marathon and to her surprise and elation not only completed the run but ended up coming in 10th.
Her first hand experience with the Bangalore Marathon in 2005 strengthened her resolve to get herself in running shape to attempt more runs and longer distances. In her own words she was hooked by the feeling of freedom and the adrenaline rush associated with running which now transcended the prerequisite of basic fitness.
Having spent most of her life in Bangalore, Nischal is extremely attached to the place and people. She used to run around the Ulsoor Lake and at the Cubbon Park Trail. She is now a part of two running clubs here -- the Runners for Life and the Bangalore Hash House Harriers and she proudly proclaims that Bangalore has one of the best running communities in India. RFL (Runners for Life) roughly has around 700 members and Bangalore Hash House Harriers has around 300 members shedding light on the fact that running is a popular sport amongst Bangaloreans.
These two running communities organise weekend runs in and around Bangalore keeping the spirit of the sport alive. In fact, RFL has a run and breakfast scheduled to take place at Eagleridge which is around 16 kms from Bangalore on 9 March and around 70 people are expected to show up. So if you have a passion for running and want to be part of a network of like minded individuals you can join any or both of the communities. The runs are organised on alternate weekends so that if you're a member of both clubs you won't be missing out on anything.
Working as a process trainer at TataSky by day, Nischal makes time for the rigorous training required for marathons by running early in the morning and on weekends. She also undergoes strength training at the Manipal Centre and has recently joined the Nisha Millet Swimming Camp. She is currently looking forward to the Tibetan Marathon which will be held in July and a 150 km run that she and a few others are planning for the near future. Nischal is ambitious and wants to push for more.
(You can find the original link to the article here)
It was when Nischal was at Pune in 2000 pursuing her Masters degree that she started running. The motive: it was the most inexpensive way to lose weight! She was first introduced to the world of marathons by a colleague at work who told her about the Bangalore marathon way back in 2005. She started training to attempt the 21 km half marathon and to her surprise and elation not only completed the run but ended up coming in 10th.
Her first hand experience with the Bangalore Marathon in 2005 strengthened her resolve to get herself in running shape to attempt more runs and longer distances. In her own words she was hooked by the feeling of freedom and the adrenaline rush associated with running which now transcended the prerequisite of basic fitness.
Having spent most of her life in Bangalore, Nischal is extremely attached to the place and people. She used to run around the Ulsoor Lake and at the Cubbon Park Trail. She is now a part of two running clubs here -- the Runners for Life and the Bangalore Hash House Harriers and she proudly proclaims that Bangalore has one of the best running communities in India. RFL (Runners for Life) roughly has around 700 members and Bangalore Hash House Harriers has around 300 members shedding light on the fact that running is a popular sport amongst Bangaloreans.
These two running communities organise weekend runs in and around Bangalore keeping the spirit of the sport alive. In fact, RFL has a run and breakfast scheduled to take place at Eagleridge which is around 16 kms from Bangalore on 9 March and around 70 people are expected to show up. So if you have a passion for running and want to be part of a network of like minded individuals you can join any or both of the communities. The runs are organised on alternate weekends so that if you're a member of both clubs you won't be missing out on anything.
Working as a process trainer at TataSky by day, Nischal makes time for the rigorous training required for marathons by running early in the morning and on weekends. She also undergoes strength training at the Manipal Centre and has recently joined the Nisha Millet Swimming Camp. She is currently looking forward to the Tibetan Marathon which will be held in July and a 150 km run that she and a few others are planning for the near future. Nischal is ambitious and wants to push for more.
(You can find the original link to the article here)
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