Young Blood Sports Club (YBSC) has expressed thanks to the residents of Shella and neighbouring villages, local pressure groups and individuals for providing financial assistance to the club as it tries to promote swimming among the youth of the area.
Swimmers from the Shella area have, over the years, come to the fore in Meghalaya swimming and recently represented the state at the National Games in Gujarat, national swimming competitions in Haryana, Odisha and Kolkata and will do so again at the North East Olympic Games, which will take place in Shillong next month.
Although some support has been received from the state government, YBSC sent its swimmers to Guwahati for two weeks of training as the Assam city has better facilities and permanent coaches, which YBSC cannot possibly afford on its own.
Some support was also received from the Special Purpose Vehicle Society, which has been created on the orders of the Supreme Court to undertake development activities in the mandated area including the development of health, education, economy, irrigation and agriculture in the areas affected by mining activities undertaken by the Lafarge Umiam Mining Pvt. Ltd.
However, the company itself did not make any contribution to the swimmers’ cause, YBSC president Komen Laitmon said today in a release.
To also raise funds, YBSC held a friendly charity football match in Shella against PFR Academy from Shillong. Ticket sales will also contribute to the club’s work among the youth.