BHUBANESWAR 19-Mar-2014 186
Parents of tennis players of Odisha have come under a common platform to help their wards, especially butting talents, improve their standard qualitatively and shine at national and international level competitions.
``In its maiden venture Odisha Tennis Players` Parents` Association (OTPPA) is going to organise an AITA Championship Series Under-14 Tournament for boys and girls at Kalinga Stadium here from March 22 to 24,`` announced Pramod Kumar Patnaik, the president of the new body at the media conference today.
According to Patnaik, a retired IAS officer, out of a total of 2,000 tennis players in Odisha, more than 1,000 are children and they aspire to make a mark at national and international circuits. But owing to high cost and commitments involved in the game, they are finding it extremely difficult to play adequate number of AITA tournaments outside the state.
``Out of around 1000 AITA-registered players in Odisha, only a dozen are able to play AITA tournaments outside the state. Playing one away tournament involves a minimum expense of Rs 15,000 and more than a week-long absence from school. Accompanying parents also need leave from respective jobs. OTPPA has been constituted with the main aim of organising as many AITA junior circuit tournaments as possible within the state,`` elaborated association secretary Jamini Mohan Mohanty.
OTPPA president, however, denied that the unsatisfactory functioning of Odisha Tennis Association has led to the formation of the new body. ``OTA has a wider role that involves conducting events for junior, seniors and veterans. But OTPPA will focus only on budding talents. OTA has fully supported our venture and we are hopeful of getting the apex state body`s affiliation in due course,`` he claimed.
Speaking on the upcoming tournament, secretary Mohanty expressed confidence that more than 100 youngsters from different states would vie for titles and ranking points. ``We will help youngsters put up their best performance by providing top class facility. They will be playing on four refurbished synthetic courts,`` he said.
President Patnaik claimed that upcoming tournament would be conducted exclusively from the contributions of the association members. ``But in future, we hope to seek assistance from corporate houses, state government and generous individuals to intensify our activities and help budding tennis players materialise their dreams,`` he added.
OPTTA vice-presidents Debabrata Chhotray, Sarbeswar Mohapatra, joint-secretary Amitav Saran, treasurer Choudhury B K Das and all the executive members, leading men`s player Satirtha Patnaik were present in the media conference.
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PHOTO: Office-bearers of OTPPA at a media conference in Bhubaneswar on March 19, 2014.
