NEW DELHI: JSW Inspire, an active-wear brand owned by The JSW Group, will be the sports performance and lifestyle partner of the Indian Olympic Association through the next cycle of Commonwealth, Asian, and Olympic Games.
Team India contingents will wear the company’s apparel at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, the 2022 Asian Games scheduled to be held in Hangzhou next year, and the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The group had previously sponsored the Indian contingent ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
“We have made it our life’s mission to leave no stone unturned till India is among the top-five nations at the Olympic Games when it comes to the medal tally. We founded the Inspire Institute of Sport so that we could create champions who stand on podiums while our national anthem plays over and over,” said Parth Jindal, managing director of JSW Cement and JSW Paints, and founder of the Inspire Institute of Sport.
Rajeev Mehta, Secretary General of the Indian Olympic Association, said, “We are excited to see them continue and build upon their partnership with the IOA over the next few years. Team India is taking great strides on the global sports stage and it is only fitting that our athletes wear a high-quality Indian brand while representing the nation globally.”
The group, through its sports vertical has had a presence in Indian sports over the past decade through its various franchises (Bengaluru FC, Haryana Steelers, Delhi Capitals), partnerships with central and state sports institutions, and the Inspire Institute of Sport, a world class high-performance facility located in Bellary.
“Sakshi Malik at Rio 2016, and Neeraj Chopra and Bajrang Punia at Tokyo 2020 are just the start. We are driven by the idea of establishing India as a sporting superpower on the world stage, and every effort from us is a big push in that direction,” said Jindal.
Ten athletes from the IIS across four disciplines were part of the Team India contingent at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, while as many as 22 are set to be part of the Indian contingent at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham later this month.
Through its flagship centre at Bellary and a network of feeder centres across India, the Inspire Institute of Sport highlighted its success at the Olympic games through Neeraj Chopra, who won India’s first ever medal in Track and Field at the Games with Gold in the Javelin throw event. Also on the podium was IIS athlete Bajrang Punia, who won Bronze in the Men’s 65-kg Wrestling event.
India’s sports market size surpassed ₹9,500 crore in 2021, to a report by GroupM ESP.
