The Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2024 are all set to begin very soon, check out the schedule, date, time, venues, live streaming, and more below
Notably, this yearโs edition will mark the sixth edition of the tournament under the Indian government’s Khelo India initiative.
Khelo India Youth Games Tamil Nadu, Chennai (KIYG) 2024 schedule, date, state venue and mascot
After the successful conduct of several national and international sporting events, Tamil Nadu is preparing to host the Khelo India Youth Games 2023 from January 19th to 31st, 2024. Chaired a preparatory meeting today. Discussions centered on successful conduct of this multiโฆ pic.twitter.com/uLFH5MZu4q
— Udhay (@Udhaystalin) December 9, 2023
The Khelo India Youth Games are an annual event created to promote sports at the grassroots level.
KIYG 2024 dates and venue
The Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2024 are all set to take place from January 19 to 31 in Tamil Nadu. This yearโs edition will take place across the four southern cities of Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, and Trichy.
Tamil Nadu is the first state to showcase its rich traditional history and is looking to educate the younger generation about the bravery of legendary freedom fighter Rani Velu Nachiyar, who is also referred to as ‘Veera Mangai’ (the brave woman) who is the mascot for the games.
Rani Velu Nachiyar was the first Indian queen to go to war against the East India Company and her contributions have been projected in school books to encourage children to learn the history and contribution of Mangai in the freedom struggle.
Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2024
Heading into the competition, over 6,000 athletes from across the country are all set to participate in the event. The competition will include Olympic, non-Olympic, and indigenous games. Silambam, which is a form of Indian martial arts, will also feature in the upcoming event. The sport featured in the previous edition of the KIYG programme, as a demo sport. Notably, the competitions will all take place in the under-18 age category.
KIYG 2024 format
The KIYG generally operates in a team championship format. As such, the medals that individual athletes and teams earn directly contribute to the overall medal tally of their respective state or Union Territory (UT). Following the end of the competition, the state or UT with the highest number of gold medals is declared the overall champion.
KIYG previous editions
The last edition of the KIYG, which was the fifth edition, took place across eight cities in Madhya Pradesh and New Delhi. The event featured over 5,000 athletes, representing 36 states and Union Territories. The athletes and teams competed for 973 medals across 27 sporting disciplines. During that edition, Madhya Pradesh, which was the host state, featured the largest contingent of around 500 athletes. Notably, the defending champions, Maharashtra and Haryana, are so far the only states to have won the overall title at the Khelo India Youth Games.
Haryana managed to win the Khelo India Youth Games during the inaugural edition of the event back in 2018. It was back then called the Khelo India School Games. Meanwhile, Maharashtra won the 2019 and 2020 editions before Haryana regained their title in 2022. Last year, Maharashtra won the Khelo India Youth Games 2023 title with a total of 56 gold medals, 55 silver medals, and 50 bronze medals. Behind them were Haryana, who finished closely behind with 41 golds, 32 silvers, and 55 bronzes.
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