The Jammu and Kashmir Sports Council on Saturday organised the first-ever Kayaking and Canoeing marathon on the river Jhelum in Srinagar.
Around 100 participants took part in the marathon, which started from the famous Zero Bridge to the Ganpatyar area of Srinagar.
The race had 4 categories which included Senior, Junior, K1 and K2
According to the government, water sports is one of the best ways to encourage youth towards sports and train them for Olympic-level competitions owing to presence of several water bodies in the Kashmir region.
''We are blessed with natural water resources; this was the first-ever canoe race, particularly in the river Jhelum. We can use the river Jhelum for training as well as the competition. The popularity of games is extremely important and by doing such events, we want to promote it,” said Bilquis Mir Director, Water Sports.
“In the last four years we have won 92 medals at the national level and 4 athletes represented us at international level. This is the first such initiative and in June we will organise the first-ever Rowing championship where more than 500 athletes will participate from across the country. We have a lot of talent, and our focus is the Olympics,” he added,
Athletes, who actively took part in the sports, said they expect more such events to be held in the valley.
''I am extremely happy that this marathon was organised. This helps other youngsters to pick up sports as careers. The youngsters will be attracted to these sports and represent the country at international levels. '' said Vilayat Hussain, Athlete, Gold Winner in Saturday's Marathon.
At least 10 female athletes took part in the marathon. The winner of the marathon in the female category was Nabeela Khan, a local athlete who has won many medals for Jammu Kashmir.
''This will give a lot of exposure to the newcomers to get a platform like this. The most important thing is to have fun in all this. It's how you become healthy. Sports can get you fame, and you can represent the country at international levels. You can make so many people proud. '' said Nabeela Khan.