NEW DELHI : Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) have announced a long-term partnership to enable the holistic growth of athletics in India. The conglomerate’s Reliance Foundation has been a dedicated partner to AFI over the years and now the partnership is set to deepen the engagement between the two organizations.
The company said in a statement that the partnership aims to discover, nurture and develop Indian athletes from across the country and provide them with facilities, coaching and sports science and medicine support by leveraging the foundation’s ecosystem. This includes the Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High-Performance Center and its Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital.
The partnership will focus on girl athletes and aims to bridge the gender divide and enable them to achieve their dreams. The ‘Reliance’ brand will appear across the national team’s jerseys and training kits at key national, international competitions and training camps.
Nita M. Ambani, IOC Member, and director of the firm said, “Athletics is one of the most popular disciplines in global sport, and this association aims to accelerate the growth of Indian athletics by providing opportunities and world-class facilities to our young talent, with a special focus on girls. With access to the right infrastructure, training, and support, I’m sure we will see many more of our young athletes on victory stands around the world! This partnership is also an important step towards our dream of strengthening the Olympic Movement in India.”
Adille Sumariwalla, president of the Athletics Federation of India said, “We have seen our athletics contingent grow at international events, and with a committed partner in Reliance Industries, we are very sure that, soon, we will see an increase in participation and international success across multiple disciplines. The partnership will focus on holistic development, building a strong talent pool and potential medal winners who will make India proud in the years to come.”
As per a report by GroupM ESP, the entertainment, esports and sports division of GroupM India, in a sports sponsorship report for India 2021 said the size of the Indian sports industry spends is estimated to have surpassed ₹9500 crore in 2021. The report took into consideration the sponsorship spends, player endorsements and media spends on sports properties.
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