Manipuris organise wrestling championship

Imphal, July 19 : Sporting activities come naturally to Manipuris. Be it football, basketball, boxing, gymnastics or wrestling, boys and girls from Manipur have made their presence felt in all these fields.

The state recently organised Wrestling Championship 2007-2008 in Imphal. "We need to produce some good players from the rural areas. From rural areas, players cannot spend so much money to participate in these things. So, this is my suggestion that if we can open some good academy in all the parts of this state, only then we can produce good players," said M. Phony Singh, Secretary General, All Manipur Wrestling Association.

The main indoor stadium at Khuman Lampak was a scene of hectic activities for more than a week. There were 135 wrestlers from all over the state who took part in the championship. "To bring fame and name to my state Manipur, I participated in wrestling," said Romen Singh, a wrestler.

Manipur is one of the main contributors besides Delhi and Haryana to national and international events, so far as wrestling is concerned.

But despite the achievements, Manipur yearns for development; it yearns to be an equal participant in national progress. But militant activities have come in the way of realising these dreams. By L C K Singh

ANI