Dedicated to Indian Sporting Glory

 by Shrutee K/DNS

         First-of-its-kind privately funded High-Performance Training Centre spread over 42 acres will house 300 athletes across five Olympic disciplines of Boxing, Judo, Wrestling, Athletics and Swimming.

         Scouted athletes from across India offered full scholarships to train in completely residential facility in Vijayanagar, Karnataka with access to world class infrastructure, coaching, sports science support and formal education.

         IIS has been recognized by the Sports Authority of India as a Khelo India-accredited development center for wrestling and boxing.

         The initiative, led by the JSW Group, is also supported by CSR funding from a slew of Indian and international corporates.

VIJAYANAGAR, KARNATAKA: The Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS), India’s first privately-funded High-Performance Training Institute, was inaugurated in Vijayanagar, Karnataka, on Wednesday, with a host of senior Indian Olympians, government officials and guests in attendance. Spread over 42 acres, the Institute is a unique initiative led by the JSW Group to bring a world class Olympic training centre to India which can provide Indian athletes access to the most advanced infrastructure, coaching and sports science within the country. Triple Olympic Gold medalist Balbir Singh Sr., India’s only individual Olympic Gold winner Abhinav Bindra and 12-time Grand Slam Champion Mahesh Bhupathi were present at the launch of the Institute, along with Onkar Kedia, Special Director-General - Sports Authority of India, Anjali Bhagwat, Mahavir Phogat and other eminent members of the sports fraternity. The guests were welcomed by Mr Sajjan Jindal, Chairman – JSW Group, Mrs. Sangita Jindal, Chairperson – JSW Foundation, Parth Jindal, Founder - IIS & MD - JSW Cement Ltd  and Mustafa Ghouse, CEO - JSW Sports.

The vision of JSW Group scion Parth Jindal, the Institute was developed over the past four years and has already been home to close to 120 young athletes in Wrestling, Judo and Boxing, who have been scouted from across the country. A track-and-field program has been introduced recently and a new batch of athletes would be joining the IIS in the coming month. A FINA-approved aquatics centre is scheduled to be operational in 2019. At the residential facility, these athletes are offered full scholarships and have access to training facilities, sports science and medicine support, and appropriate nutrition to ensure they are at par with similar facilities in developed sporting nations.

The unique initiative has seen JSW Group bring together 20 corporate donors, making IIS a first-of-its-kind collaborative effort by corporate India to supplement government efforts in supporting Indian Olympic sports.

Officially opening the doors of this Institute to the public on the momentous occasion of India’s Independence Day, Parth Jindal, Founder - IIS shared, “The Inspire Institute of Sport is not just another institute; it is a movement. It has been built for India, by Indians, to help athletes make a mark at the global stage. Our vision is for IIS to be the destination of choice for every Indian athlete who dreams of Olympic success. Through the Institute, we want to create an environment where no talented athlete is deprived of success because of a lack of resources, infrastructure or training support”.

“We have done extensive planning and on-ground research before building this facility. We visited High Performance Centres across the world, collecting crucial insights into the functioning of such training institutes.  We are committed to providing athletes at IIS a truly world-class training environment and have been encouraged by the feedback we have received so far,” said Mustafa Ghouse, CEO – JSW Sports & former Indian Davis-cupper and Asian Games medallist who has overseen the creation of the facility.

Led by Rushdee Warley, CEO - IIS, who has over two-decades of experience of working with elite athletes internationally, the IIS team is made up of close to 40 internationally-trained high-performance experts from eight countries. These experts are working collectively towards improving performances of these athletes. Head coaches include Mamuka Kizilashvili from Gerogia (Judo), Damien Jacomelli from France (Wrestling), Ronald Simms Jr. from the United States (Boxing) and Anthony Yaich from France (Track & Field). The coaches are supported by a team of sports scientists, exercise physiologists and physiotherapists.

Commenting on the functioning of the institute, Rushdee Warley shared, “What we’re striving to create here is a world class daily training environment that offers athletes the opportunity to fulfil their potential. The combination of a great facility and great people will build a culture of high performance, the end product of which will be performances that are competitive internationally.”

The expansive campus at IIS can accommodate 300 athletes at full capacity and has the following infrastructure:

IAAF approved 400m Athletics track

42,000 sq. ft. High-Performance Centre

16,000 sq ft. Strength and Conditioning area

5,000 sq. ft. cafeteria

FINA-approved aquatics centre, scheduled to be operational in 2019

Since the Institute commenced operations in April 2017, IIS has welcomed numerous elite Indian athletes for training at rehabilitation in the premises. Some of those who have already benefited from a stint at IIS include Commonwealth Games medallists Neeraj Chopra, Vikas Krishan Yadav and Vinesh Phogat, Rio Bronze medallist Sakshi Malik and talented young athletes like boxer Nikhat Zareen and High Jumper Tejaswin Shankar. The facility also hosted pre-competition training camps for the Boxing Federation of India’s elite boxers, ISL team Bengaluru FC and the Yogeshwar Dutt Wrestling Academy.

Designed by award-winning architect Alok Shetty, IIS was recently accredited by the Sports Authority of India as a Khelo India academy and will be providing support and skill training to Khelo India scholarship supported athletes in boxing and wrestling.

About IIS:  Inspire Institute of Sport is India’s first privately funded High Performance Training Centre that trains talented young athletes across five Olympic disciplines of Wrestling, Boxing, Judo, Athletics and Swimming. Spread over 42 acres in Vijayanagar, Karnataka, IIS is a unique initiative led by the JSW Group that brings together 20 corporate donors who are collectively funding the operations of the institute through CSR funding. Led by an Advisory Board comprising senior Indian sporting legends like Abhinav Bindra, Sourav Ganguly, Mahesh Bhupathi and high-performance expert Dr. Tom Patrick, IIS will offer about 300 talented young athletes full scholarships in a completely residential, world class training environment.

About JSW Group: The US$ 13 billion JSW Group played a key role in India's growth story. Ranked among India's top business houses, JSW's innovative and sustainable forays into the core sectors of Steel, Energy, Cement & Infrastructure are helping build a new nation. The Group continues to strive for excellence with its strengths, differentiated product mix, state-of-the-art technology, excellence in execution and focus on sustainability. With a diverse workforce of over 40,000 people, JSW continues to strive for excellence with its strengths, which comprises its differentiated product mix, state-of-the-art technology, excellence in execution and focus on sustainability.