Bhikhu Bhana
Indian Newslink is organising its Sixth Annual Sports, Community, Arts & Culture Awards Presentation Night on Monday, June 24, 2019 at Newmarket Room, Ellerslie Convention Centre, 80 Ascot Avenue, Remuera in Auckland.
The Sports Awards segment will include the ‘Best Sportsman of the Year’ and the ‘Best Sportswoman of the Year’ along with other Sports Awards.
We congratulate all these current Sports achievers.
These young athletes would have aspirations to achieve the highest honour, and that is to represent New Zealand in their chosen sport.
Importance in life
Sports is an important element in the fabric of New Zealand life.
The achievements of New Zealanders in many Sports including Rugby, Cricket, Yachting, Rowing and Squash are a matter of pride not only to the community but also to the country. New Zealand punches above its weight in the worldwide area.
Cricket is like a religion in India, as evidenced by the crowds in England at the current ICC World Cup Cricket.
In Hockey, India used to win Gold Medals at the Olympic Games, as if by right.
Holistic Approach
Indian Newslink is planning a holistic approach acknowledging Sportspersons of the Past, the Present and the Future
What may not be well known is the fact that the first Indian to represent New Zealand was in 1959, sixty years ago. Since then, more than 50 persons have represented New Zealand in various sporting capacities.
Here are a few examples of the exceptional performance of our elite sportspersons.
First Gold
We believe that the first persons of India origin outside of India who won a Gold Medal at the Olympic Games came from New Zealand! This is an amazing and exciting information.
There are many more stories about our elite Indian sportsperson that can be written.
As an encouragement to the young sportspersons, Indian Newslink, in conjunction with the New Zealand Indian Central Association (NZICA) will acknowledge five Elite sportspersons from yester-years at its annual Awards Ceremony.
Elite Sportspersons 2018
Those acknowledged in 2018 were (a) Narotam Puna family; four sportspersons from one family to represent New Zealand in Cricket, soccer and Hockey, spreading three generations (b) Ramesh Patel, Hockey Olympian Gold Medallist (c) Mohan Patel, Hockey Olympian Gold Medallist (d) Dipak Patel, Cricket World Cup player and Test Veteran and (e) Siona Fernandes, Olympics Boxing Representative and a Bharata Natyam dancers.
We celebrate the elite Sportspersons to ensure that their athletic endeavours are not forgotten and hope that would inspire our young athletes.
Sports Awards 2019
You will find various categories of Sport Awards for current athletes in the print and web editions of Indian Newslink and on social media. There are Awards in the Cricket, Soccer, Rugby Union, Rugby League, Netball, Hockey, Golf, and other Sports. From among the winners, the Best Sportsman of the Year and the Best Sportswoman of the Year will be chosen and honoured at the Awards Night.
We want every organisation or individual to nominate worthy candidates for these categories every year.
Indian Newslink is also open to suggestions on other categories in the future.
We want parents, caregivers, coaches, friends and organisations to nominate young achievers in any area of physical activity. There are no boundaries here. This is an opportunity to identify your talent and hopefully, Indian Newslink and NZICA can guide our youth to achieve their true talent.
Opportunity and Responsibility
New Zealand is a country of opportunities and there should be no barriers for youths to reach their potential.
It is in this area that we as a community have an opportunity and responsibility to make our youth enjoy and achieve great results in a sporting activity.
It is noteworthy that this year, the Awards event has extended Arts & Culture as additional segments to include a wide range of talent. As shown by Ms Fernandes, it is possible to combine Sports and Culture at a higher level.
I recommend you to purchase tickets to attend the Sixth Annual Indian Newslink Sports, Community, Arts & Culture Awards 2019 and find out our Elite Sportspersons for 2019.
Please see the advertisement featured on the front page and on Page 19 of this issue.
Tickets priced at $69 per person (this event is not for persons below 15 years of age, except in the case of winners) and tables seating ten persons at $690 per table are available. Indian Newslink events do not have gate sales and hence all tickets must be purchased in advance. Please contact (09) 5336377 or 021-836528. Email: venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
For further details, please visit www.inlisa.com; www.indiannewslink.co.nz,www.inliba.com).
Bhikhu Bhana is the Immediate Past President of the New Zealand Indian Central Association. He has represented Canterbury in Cricket and Hockey at the Senior level and Universities in New Zealand. He lives in Pukekohe.
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Photo Caption:
Elite Sportsmen with Senior Leaders: (From left) Dipak Patel, Ramesh Patel, Mohan Patel, Chandu Daji, Paul Patel and Manoj Daji
