New Delhi, June 25 (IANS) The Poornima University and the Rajasthan University will jointly host the Khelo India University Games 2025 in Jaipur in November, it was announced on Wednesday. This will be the fifth iteration of the Khelo India University Games that began in February 2020.

The multi-sport Games, where more than 4,000 athletes are expected from more than 200 Universities. Like previous editions, there will be at least 20 disciplines on the KIUG 2025 programme. Chandigarh University won the team championships at KIUG 2024, co-hosted by Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim, Nagaland and Tripura.

“I am extremely happy to announce that the Khelo India Youth Games will take place in Rajasthan in November 2025. These Games are for under-25 athletes and will be coming after the under-18 Khelo India Youth Games that took place in Bihar in May this year. These Games offer a great opportunity for athletes who seek a national platform to impress our numerous scouts eyeing the best talents in the country,” said Union Youth Affairs and Sports Minister, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya.

Eight Khelo India University Games records were created in athletics in KIUG 2024. Five of them were created by men. “Worldwide, university students dominate multi-sport events. In Rajasthan, we hope to see some quality performances as we expect the athletes will be at their peak,” added Mandaviya.

A total of 770 medals – 240 gold, 240 silver, and 290 bronze – were on offer at the 11-day KIUG 2024 held in Northeast India for the first time. Over 200 universities competed for the KIUG 2024 title, with around 4,500 athletes taking part in 20 sports.

Swimmer Pratyasa Ray of Utkal University, with four gold, one silver, and one bronze, was the most successful female athlete. The honour of the most successful male athlete went to Jain University’s Xavier Michael Dsouza, who won four gold medals.

Lovely Professional University came second at KIUG 2024 with 20 gold, 14 silver, and eight bronze for a total of 42 medals, while Amritsar’s Guru Nanak Dev University were third with 12 gold, 20 silver, and 19 bronze for a tally of 51.

–IANS

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