by Adolf Washington
Bangalore, Aug 10: This is perhaps the first Catholic diocese in the country that has partnered with a private sports development company to launch a sports Academy. Called ‘Nava Jyothi Youth Academy’, its primary objectives are to search for and groom rural youth in the field of sports and launch them at the national and global level.
Archbishop Bernard Moras who launched the Academy Sunday 7th August by kick-starting a football match, cheerfully beamed with hope before several sports enthusiasts saying “We have set up many educational institutions, but this is the first time we are getting into an institution exclusively for sports”. In his early days, Archbishop Moras himself was an active football and basketball player.
Archbishop Moras
On 7th December 2009 the Archbishop had inaugurated the ‘Jude Felix Hockey Academy’ exclusively for the orphans at St. Marys Orphanage in Bangalore with Hockey skipper Jude Felix himself rendering active support.
The Navayothi Academy launched at a parish in Mariapura in Kanakapura Taluk of Karnataka is located a few miles away from Sri. Ravishankar’s ‘Art of Living Foundation’. The brainchild of this project, Fr. John Antony believes that “there is immense talent among rural youth and with initiatives like this, they will certainly scale new heights. The Church can play a very vital role in shaping these young people for the future. These are ways the Church can be proactive”.
Started in collaboration with FC, a sports development company in Bangalore, the project envisages, by April 2012, the establishment of a professional football field, a swimming pool, a gymnasium and a hostel. The first batch intake would be 50-60 students.
Peter Abreo, the CEO of FC a start-up, sports-academic venture has put in heart and soul to partner in this project. His primary focus is on developing Bangalore's football fortunes over the next 10 years. “It will have a half-day focus on academics and second half only for sports. We are in the process of scouting for foreign coaches and support staff” he says.
Fr John Anthony , Peter Abreo
While Archbishop Bernard Moras set the ball rolling for the inaugural football match at Mariapura he has actually set the ball rolling for such projects that will not only scout for and promote and groom sportsmen, but will also put the Church in new-light. With this launch, the Church has shown itself as one that cares not only for the spiritual and temporal needs of people, but also as an agency that taps every God-given sporting talent in the youth, particularly the rural youth. As the Archbishop himself opines “Rural youth do not have opportunities as the urban youth have, so this academy will primarily focus on rural youth”.
Looking beyond today, there is hope, that many sports stars of the future will look back to say a thanks to the Catholic Church as they hold their trophies high.