Scottish Team Eyes 2030 Games Prep During Ahmedabad Visit
Ahmedabad, October 24: A Scottish delegation led by First Minister John Swinney, MSP, toured the Vijayi Bharat Foundation (VBF) campus on Friday as part of its review of preparations for the 2030 Commonwealth Games. Swinney also attended a women-friendly cricket match during the visit.
The delegation met the VBF team in a formal session covering the foundation's work, its athlete development initiatives and its future plans. Participants discussed long-term sports objectives, the Commonwealth Games, VBF's upcoming campus and the continuing Khele Sanand programme.
The session gave VBF an opportunity to present its operations and vision. Both parties also exchanged ideas on the future of sports and the growth of athletes.
Eight members of the Scottish government travelled with the delegation, including policy, communications and special advisers. The group also included representatives of Glasgow 2026 Ltd, Commonwealth Games Scotland and the University of Stirling.
After the meeting, the visitors inspected the VBF campus to understand its infrastructure and daily working. A friendly cricket match followed on the campus. The match celebrated the role of women in sports and created a shared setting in which the delegation and VBF staff could interact.
The visit deepened the Scottish team's understanding of VBF's activities and its support for athletes. Conversations also touched on sports development, the importance of training facilities and the contribution of sports science to athletic performance.
VBF's mission is to nurture athletes and provide them with platforms to compete at elevated levels. Its long-term goal is to establish a cutting-edge Olympic training centre in India, one that backs the country's Olympic excellence agenda and offers a high-performance environment for domestic and international athletes.
VBF runs the High-Performance Centre, Community Sports and Khele Sanand. The High-Performance Centre specialises in judo, archery, shooting and fencing. Community Sports extends reach to badminton, football, equestrian, table tennis, martial arts, shooting and chess. Khele Sanand encourages grassroots involvement and helps spot talent in kho-kho, kabaddi, volleyball and athletics.