Srinagar: The three day 5th National Tong IL Moo Do federation cup 2022 concluded on Saturday at Indoor Stadium, Polo view here.
Over 400 martial artists, including several international players, from 15 different states of the country participated in the three-day National federation cup.
The event was organized in association with JKAUMA under its ‘Drugs Outs, Sport In’ initiative, which has witnessed an overwhelming response by youth in schools and colleges.
JKAUMA, under the flagship programme ‘Drugs out, Sports in’, has been organising seminars in different schools and colleges from last about one year across Kashmir valley to raise awareness about drug addiction and its ill effects.
The national championship which was supported by A S Gold, Green Globe, Pebble, Alfamiglia, Northcut Enterprises, 5Ghz India Private limited, Bhasin & co and Guide the Professionals concluded at a closing ceremony.
Director Special Security Force Raj Bhawan J&K Shakti Kumar Pathak was the Chief Guest at the occasion.
DDC Vice Chairman Bilal Bhat, General Secretary Tong-IL Moo-Do Federation of India Mohammad Arshid, Mir Nilofar Rashid Chairperson Alfamiglia and Chairperson Guide The Professionals Saba Bhat were the Guest of Honors.
J&K lifted the first place trophy, Maharashtra won second while Delhi secured third place in the tournament.
Many of the top Indian players were seen in action during the championship which had around 13 teams, including Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Assam, Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, and Kerala.
The national championship had 60 weight categories. The closing ceremony gala started with martial art students showcasing self defence techniques and body flexibility to have the crowd mesmerized.
This was followed by students from different schools performing cultural items, which in no time struck a chord with the spectators.
Shakti Kumar Pathak in his address expressed his happiness to see such events being organised by the youth of Kashmir. “Youth are the torch bearer and assets for Nation building for which they have to be disciplined in every nature and sports provides them the opportunity,” he said.
He said involving youth in sports will not only develop them physically but will also help in development of their mind.
“Such national events will give a lot of exposure to our youth to perform,” he said.
Meanwhile, talking about the event, Adnan Ayoub, who is the general secretary of the state federation, said it was a great accomplishment for JKTMA that they able to organize this national championship.
“This year has so far been amazing for the sport in the state,” he said.
The J&K body for the sport which is associated with the Tong IL Moo Do Federation of India has organised several nationals and state and district level events since the game was introduced in the state five years ago.
“J&K is full of talented athletes, but we lack even the basic facilities, like proper equipment. However, our players still manage to perform impressively at both national and international levels. If our players are given the facilities provided to the players from the rest of the country, they will perform much better,” Rameez Khan, a member of the J&K Tong-IL Moo-Do Federation said.
