Let me start by giving my readers two contrasting pictures. The first is Indian hockey. With the state of Odisha firmly behind it, the men’s team has delivered medal-winning efforts at the last two Olympic Games. We have also recently seen a medal-winning performance in the Junior Men’s World Cup. While the women’s game is struggling, Hockey India is intent on putting corrective measures in place as soon as possible.
Contrast this with football, and we know the reality. There are no takers for Indian football, and with the FSDL deal coming to an end on December 8, things are in a muddle.
This brings me to the issue of state support. With sustained backing, hockey was salvaged. Similarly, with tremendous support from the state of Telangana, we have now seen a strong fillip for sport in the state. The Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy is a standout, and the government’s mission to have at least one athlete from the state in every discipline at the 2036 Olympics is a fantastic goal. That is exactly what India needs—proactive public-private engagement that leads to real progress in Indian sport. Such progress can only happen through dialogue and discussion. We need engagement across the spectrum; that is when roadmaps can be designed and implemented.
With this view, I am absolutely delighted to announce Telangana as the feature state for Trailblazers 4.0. There is much happening in the state, and it is essential that we discuss and document it. It is crucial that stakeholders from the state engage with athletes, corporates, and policymakers, and there can be no better forum than Trailblazers 4.0, with 30-plus athletes present in Kolkata between March 14-17, 2025. I am confident that meaningful partnerships can be formed at the conclave itself, as discussions take place both on and off stage. Athletes can utilise the facilities in the state, while investors may find it attractive to collaborate with the government. In all of this, the sole beneficiary is Indian sport.
Telangana has already formed a committee that includes senior corporates such as Sanjiv Goenka and Vita Dani, as well as celebrated athletes like Gopichand and Abhinav Bindra, to chart a roadmap for sport in the state. At Trailblazers, we wish to understand this vision better and explore whether the model can be replicated across India. Can Telangana also take up the cause of one particular sport going forward and make the pathway easier for our athletes?
Speaking on the partnership, Jayesh Ranjan, Special Chief Secretary for Special Projects, Government of Telangana, said: “Through its new sports policy, Telangana aspires to become a state where raw talent is identified and nurtured at an early stage to world standards across various Olympic disciplines, and a strong sporting culture is created in general.
“The government wishes to facilitate significant participation from the entire sporting ecosystem involving corporates, sports persons and coaches of repute, sports administrators, and sporting institutions, both from within and outside the country. The government looks forward to a long-standing partnership with Trailblazers to further its sports-related agenda.”
We will also be launching a podcast with key athletes from the state starting in early 2026.
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