(VOL - 6) April - June 2023 |
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A lot of activities happened at Simply Sport last quarter. With a lot of learnings and opportunities to explore, our focus inclined more towards Simply Periods and Simply Smiles. We continued our mission to help athletes get equal opportunities and platforms to showcase their potential by conducting various tournaments, workshops and events through our grassroots academies and partners. Through the Simply Periods initiative, we continued to build awareness and create the right ecosystem to help women athletes and coaches to understand the intricacies and impact of menstruation in sports. We launched our new initiative on mental health called Simply Smiles focussing on empowering coaches on the topic. Continue reading to understand the impact we made since the last quarter. |
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We added two new partner grassroots academies to our program, expanding our organization's reach in fostering grassroots sports and their development. |
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Bangalore Torpedoes Volleyball grassroots program |
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Grassroots program expansion: The number of athletes in the Torpedoes' grassroots program increased from 20 to 30. This expansion allows more young athletes to participate and benefit from the program's activities and training. |
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Summer camp: A summer camp was organized at Indapur Judo Academy. The camp provided young athletes with an opportunity to develop their skills and engage in various sports activities during the summer break. At the end of the summer camp, athletes who performed well were selected to be part of a support program. |
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Mrida Education & Welfare society |
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Our partner Mrida has added a sports vertical under its umbrella to enhance the sporting culture and provide a better ecosystem for athletes. This addition reflects a shift in focus towards sports development and training. The football academy hired a new coach with a B License qualification. Mrida acquired a new facility, providing improved infrastructure and resources for the football academy's training and operations. The football academy also secured the opportunity to participate in the prestigious Delhi League. This achievement allows the academy's young players to compete with the best talent and showcase their performance. |
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Level-Up Simply Sport Badminton Excellence Program (LSBEP) |
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Nutrition sessions: Two sessions on nutrition were conducted for the athletes participating in the excellence program. These sessions aimed to educate and guide athletes on maintaining a healthy and balanced diet for improved performance.
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Sports Psychology session: A sports psychology session was organized for the athletes of the excellence program. This session aimed to provide mental and emotional support to enhance their performance and well-being.
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Tournaments & results: LSBEP athletes put in eye-catching performances at the Yonex Sunrise All India Senior Ranking Badminton Tournament 2023. Aditya Joshi reached the quarterfinals, while Tarun Reddy reached the pre-quarterfinals. Saneeth S Dayanand, Harsheel Dani & Rohan Gurbani made it to the second round in the main draw. |
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Girls Education Scholarship Program |
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This quarter we forged a new partnership with Reliance Foundation, and did series of workshops across India. We also had our first batch of 224 coaches graduates at the SAI Banagalore Diploma course.We impacted 700+ athletes and coaches, our highest number achieved in a quarter so far. |
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We conducted our coach workshop in SAI Bangalore for the 5th and the last cohort of the 22-23 academic year. We had our first batch of Simply Periods SAI graduates by the end of the workshop. On special request, we also conducted our workshop for the SAI NIS faculty in Bangalore.
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We conducted an athlete workshop each at Indapur Judo Academy, Tenvic High-Performance Center in Odisha, and the Thane Badminton Academy. We also conducted 2 athlete workshops in SAI Sanskardham center in Nadiad.
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Additionally, we conducted coach workshops in Sai Nadiad and Tenvic High-performance center, respectively.
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We were invited to do a session by our partners Reliance Foundation for their Management, Sports Science and Hospital team in Mumbai.
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Along with our partners Reliance Foundation we put up a kiosk at the 62nd Inter State Athletics Championship, the Inter State Meet at KIT university in Bhubaneswar, Intra State Weightlifting Championships. The kiosks had 436 visitors and it was used to educate the audience about menstruation and menstrual products. All participants also received period care kits.
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We conducted 5 workshops in Odisha’s Kalinga Stadium and impacted 122 athletes and coaches so far. These workshops were done in high performance centers and in sports hostels.
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To know more about Simply Periods and workshops, contact- 📞: 8850504513 📧 : aditi.m@simplysport.in |
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We are happy to launch the 'Simply Smiles' initiative focussing on educating coaches on the importance of mental health in sports. The program empowers coaches to encourage open conversation about the topic, understand symptoms and create meaningful interventions hence building a safe space for athletes to perform. |
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Through the guidance of sports psychologists, the initiative educates grassroots coaches on identifying and addressing potential issues to guide athletes through appropriate channels.
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We conducted our first-ever Simply Smiles workshop on ‘Understanding Mental Health in Sports & Athletes' Well-being’ for the coaches of Level Up Badminton Academy and Khelo Rugby in Bangalore. It is aimed at educating coaches about mental health in sports, identifying potential issues, addressing them through the right channels. It was a successful event that witnessed active participation from 13 coaches in what was an interactive and meaningful session. |
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To know more about Simply Smiles and to conduct workshops, contact- 📞: 8147575700 📧 : notifications@simplysport.in |
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Future Stars Sports Academy |
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Future Star Sports Academy, located in Mayurbhanj, Odisha, is a residential academy for 70 rugby players. We provide comprehensive support to the academy, including sports science guidance, soft skill tutoring, and the provision of rugby balls. Our aim is to optimize training, enhance performance, and foster all-round development among the athletes. |
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GK Mad is a frisbee community based in Delhi. We provide support to GK Mad by offering sports science expertise and access to training facilities. Our goal is to enhance the training experience and overall performance of the frisbee players in the community. |
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International Day of Sport for Development and Peace We celebrated International Day of Sport for Development and Peace with partner academies, fostering inclusivity and education. Mixed-gender activities at partner academies promoted teamwork, respect, and equality through sports like Soccer, Volleyball, Judo, and Fun recursion games. The event aimed to raise awareness about sports' positive impact, fostering a more peaceful and inclusive world. We thank our partner academies for their support in empowering young athletes with important life skills through the joy of sports.
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Menstrual Hygiene Day On May 28th - Menstrual Hygiene Day - we had the honor of hosting an expert in Women's Health and Hormonal Health, Dr Nicky Keay. She conducted a webinar titled Menstrual Health Matters, which was attended by over 45 participants across the country. An offline workshop was also conducted for SAI Bangalore’s junior elite female athletes to celebrate the day.
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SSF X Reliance Foundation Reliance Foundation and Simply Sport announced their partnership for the Simply Periods initiative. The announcement had Olmpic medalist lovlina borgohain talk about the importance of breaking the taboo around periods in sports.
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Simply Smiles Launch Two-time boxing world champion Nikhat Zareen and Simply Sport founder Ankit Nagori officially launched the initiative in Bangalore on July 2. The Simply Smiles Handbook for coaches was also unveiled at the event. India’s top pugilist reiterated the importance of mental health for athletes looking to make it to the very top. She shared her preparation process, and urged coaches and athletes to engage openly about their mental struggles to break the taboo surrounding the topic.
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4. Stories from our ecosystem |
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Changing lives one Frisbee at a time. This was the dream that led Benoy Stephen, a Teach for India alumni, to co-found Y-Ultimate. Ultimate Frisbee is a sport growing in popularity across India, and Y-Ultimate plays a key role in using its popularity to help children from marginalised socioeconomic backgrounds. Stephen, a mathematics undergraduate from St Stephens College in New Delhi, co-founded Y-Ultimate after coming across a few kids from Zamrudpur keen to play the sport, not only as recreation, but keen to enter tournaments. The GK Mad program, which was started by some kids from Greater Kailash in Delhi, was instrumental in the founding of Y-Ultimate. Simply Sport Foundation has partnered with the organisation to support this program to provide aid and help fulfil their long-term targets. |
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“A few friends who met on the ultimate field decided to do what we can to support GK MAD to play more and that was informally the birth of Y-Ultimate,” Stephen said. While the organisation was formed to support the GK Mad team, it has since taken on a larger role in helping children from marginalised socioeconomic backgrounds. The 27-year-old elaborated on their goals apart from the training they provide: “We engage in regular training, competitions and continuous individual and collective mentoring. GK MAD aims to be a platform to support children and youth to explore themselves through the sport of ultimate Frisbee and help them invest in self-development.” The journey is not without its obstacles, and according to Stephen, it is three-pronged. The first and main hurdle is the financial constraint, he said: “As an organisation, we are currently running on retail donors supporting us through crowdfunding and recurring donations from friends and family. Having access to institutional funders and new donors would help us do more.”
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Apart from the lack of finance, Ultimate Frisbee, which is recognised by the IOC, is not recognised by the IOA, which hampers their ability to receive concessions and provisions from the government. And finally, their ability to attract more participants to reap the benefits of Y-Ultimate’s program is prevented by society’s apprehension of mixed-gender sports. “With girls and boys playing together combined with the expectation that the girls are to carry out all the responsibilities at home, they are often withdrawn from the program. Investing the parents continuously in the development of girls is difficult and we need more people who can help us with this,” Stephen said. Despite all the constraints, Stephen, who is a World Flying Disc Certified Level 2 Ultimate Frisbee Coach, says it is very rewarding to see the impact the GK Mad program has had on the kids since its inception. He added, “We have seen kids move away from substance abuse, juvenile delinquency, continuing education after dropping out of school, investing in themselves through college education and much more.” |
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“I want to represent India and become the world number one.” Rujula Ramu took an important step towards her ultimate goal by claiming the title at the Yonex-Sunrise All India Sub Junior Ranking Badminton Tournament in Lucknow.
Simply Sport Foundation has been supporting the 16-year-old rising badminton star since 2022. It is a mutually beneficial relationship borne out of Simply Sport’s desire to support the next generation of athletes from the grassroots level, while Rujula gets to fulfill her long standing dream of becoming one India’s best badminton players.
The recent win did not come without its fair share of obstacles. Rujula credited her mental strength and will to succeed as her main weapons, which helped her get over the line when the going got tough.
“Just before the tournament started I came down with a fever, cold and cough, but recovered as the tournament started. But the worst was my ankle injury in the semifinals - it was completely swollen,” Rujula said.
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Despite the setbacks, Rujula was unwilling to give up, and fought through the pain to claim the prestigious title with a thrilling (16-21, 22-20, 21-18) over compatriot Aneri Kotak. It was a win Rujula says will remain in her memory for a long time owing to the multiple setbacks she overcame during the course of the tournament.
“I realised the mind plays an important role [in overcoming such setbacks]. You need to stay mentally strong and keep moving,” Rujula added when asked what she learnt from her experience.
Simply Sport is proud to be a part of Rujula’s journey and will continue to provide her the support she needs to fulfill her long standing dreams of representing India and reaching the very top. We are also looking for beneficiaries to be a part of the story, in order to help Rujula focus solely on her performances on the badminton court.
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SSF Athlete's Achievements |
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Saneeth Dayanand Participated in Yonex Luxembourg open 2023 Participated in Victor Swedish open 2023 Participated in Slovenia Yonex open 2023
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Sandhya Rai Sandhay represented West Bengal at the Senior national championships that finished 3rd. |
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Support our quest in providing the best of training for our athletes and help them excel in their sports. |
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6. Welcoming new members to the team |
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Pradhan has joined Simply Sport Foundation as a consultant to handle communications and fundraising. He has worked in sports over the last decade, primarily as a sports journalist. Apart from writing about sport, he also spent time working at Mahesh Bhupathi’s tennis academy, and coaching a high school football team. However, his long standing dream - through his passion for sport - has been to work at the grassroots level and help build Indian sport.
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Yogya Arya is a double major in psychology and sociology, a travel and art cinema enthusiast, a former National shooter and currently an intern at SSF. She always wanted to pursue a career in the field of sports psychology but could not find the right platform to explore the field.She believes that SSF provided her an opportunity to explore and delve deeper into the field of sports psychology and gain the kind of exposure that is required for individuals like her. Her work mainly involves researching about various aspects, facilitating online workshops and workshop modules.She is glad to be a part of the SSF family and for being given a chance to make a difference!
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Piyush is an aspiring Sports Psychologist. He believes that sports is more than just physical training. He opines that our thoughts and emotions greatly impact how well we perform. He is dedicated to using psychological techniques and strategies to help athletes reach their highest potential. The fascinating connection between the mind, sports, and success inspires him, and he is determined to empower athletes to achieve exceptional results.
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Rishab is an aspiring sports journalist, currently pursuing his master’s in multimedia journalism at Christ University, Bangalore. Having joined as a content writing intern and previously worked with various organizations such as TheNewsMinute, TimesNetwork, DeccanHerald, and Sportskeeda, he is an avid sports enthusiast. |
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Ever since its inception, Simply Sport and simply periods has maintained an article page comprising pieces written on a wide range of sporting topics by individuals hailing from various walks of life. This quarter, we posted 8 articles on our website.
Role of CSR in developing sports
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Indian Wrestlers Protests, Athlete Laws and What India can do better! |
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How to coach and play a possession-based football style at the Indian grassroots level |
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Endometriosis and Sports Performance: How Diet Can Make a Difference |
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A Guide To Understand Vaginal & Menstrual Discharge |
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Evolution, Importance, and Challenges of Sports Psychology |
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WPL 2023: A New Dawn in Women’s Cricket |
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Reliance Foundation, Simply Sport Foundation collaborate for menstrual awareness in sportsMumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 29 (ANI): Reliance Foundation on Monday said it entered into a partnership with Simply Sport Foundation (SSF) for their pioneering initiative - Simply Periods - to focus on awareness regarding menstruation and athlete performance. The focus of the nationwide menstrual programme is to help understand the relationship between menstruation and athlete [...] |
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Help Us The Jungle Crows is an internationally recognised organisation that uses the power of sport and in particular rugby to support children from disadvantaged backgrounds. |
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