Ahmedabad, June 4 (IANS) Ahmedabad’s push to become a global sporting hub received a fresh boost on Thursday as Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said the city was moving towards becoming a “Sports Capital” and preparing to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, while addressing the inauguration of the first ‘World Yogasana Championship 2026’.

The championship, being held with the virtual participation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has brought together more than 500 athletes from 78 countries, including the United States, Ghana, Kenya, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan.

Organised with the support of the Union Ministries of Youth Affairs and Sports and Ayush, the event aims to promote Yogasana as a global competitive sport.

Addressing the gathering, Patel said Ahmedabad’s emergence as a major sporting destination was taking shape under the guidance of the Prime Minister.

“Ahmedabad is moving ahead towards becoming a Sports Capital and is preparing in the direction of hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games,” he said.

The Chief Minister linked the growth of sports and yoga to the broader national vision of development, stating that a disease-free, healthy society created through yoga and pranayama was essential to achieving the goal of “Viksit Bharat @2047”.

“Such initiatives could evolve into a people’s movement and contribute to building a healthy and prosperous India,” he said.

Prime Minister Modi, while virtually inaugurating the championship, described the event as “a new chapter” in the history of world sports.

He welcomed athletes from across the globe and said Ahmedabad, recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage City, had become the venue for a historic sporting occasion.

He noted that the championship was being held ahead of International Yoga Day on June 21 and called it a “double dose” of health and wellness.

Recalling India’s successful proposal for International Yoga Day at the United Nations nearly a decade ago, which received the support of 190 countries, Modi said: “Yoga, meditation and pranayama have now become part of the daily lives of millions of people worldwide.”

“The World Yogasana Championship represented a new phase in the evolution of yoga and would help establish Yogasana as a competitive sport on the global stage,” he said.

He expressed confidence that the discipline could eventually find a place in international sporting events, including the Olympics.

Union Sports Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya said the championship demonstrated yoga’s emergence as a global sport.

He noted that while only 13 countries participated in the first FIFA World Cup, more than 500 competitors from 78 nations were taking part in the inaugural Yogasana World Cup.

Mandaviya said the Centre was actively promoting Yogasana as a sport and added that a decision had been taken to include it in the proposed 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad.

He further said efforts were underway to secure its inclusion in the 2036 Olympic Games. “When the history of the first Yogasana Championship is written, Ahmedabad and Gujarat will be remembered in golden letters,” he said.

The five-day championship features traditional, artistic, and individual events across sub-junior, junior, and senior categories.

India is represented by 122 competitors across six categories and various age groups ranging from 10 to 55 years.

Organisers have also introduced an Electronic Scoring System (TSR) and the International Code of Points for the first time at an international Yogasana event, with 32 international and 51 national judges officiating.

–IANS

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