Bhubaneswar(Kalinga Voice) : The 69th Senior State Volleyball (M&W) Championship 2021 and 1st Edition of Traditional Volleyball (Shooting) Championship for Men will commence on 11th November 2021. The four-day meet from 11th – 14th November has been scheduled across six venues in Boudh and Kandhamal district. Phulbani, Tikabali, Raikia and Baliguda in Kandhamal district and Boudh town in Boudh district are the different venues for this championship.
This mega championship is going to be held after 68 years in Kandhamal parliamentary constituency. Odisha Volleyball Association (OVA) and Athletic Associations of Boudh & Kandhamal district are jointly organizing this historical event for the first time with the financial support by Govt. of Odisha and KIIT & KISS and under the guidance of Prof. Achyuta Samanta, Member of Parliament, Kandhamal.
The inaugural ceremony of the Women’s Championship would be held on 11th November at Boudh, while Men’s & Shooting Championship would be inaugurated at Phulbani. Mr. Bikram Keshari Arukha, Minister, Forest and Environment, Parliamentary Affairs; Mr. Pratap Jena, Minister, Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water, Housing & Urban Development, Law; Mr. Tusharkanti Behera, Minister, Electronics & Information Technology, Sports & Youth Services; the MP, Kandhamal, MLAs of the respective constituency, respective district administration and members of district athletic association will grace the inaugural ceremony.
A total of 72 teams (32 Men & 20 Women in Senior State and 20 Men in Shooting) would be participating in these championships. It will feature more than 1500 Men & Women volleyball players and 200 officials across 30 districts and 6 units of Odisha.
The 1st edition of Traditional Volleyball (Shooting) Championship for Men would be held at Phulbani in Kandhamal district. The intention is to bring the local players to mainstream professional volleyball as there is not much scope in traditional volleyball. The championship is being jointly organized by Odisha Volleyball Association (OVA) and Boudh-Kandhamal District Athletic Associations.
For the 1st time, prize money will be awarded to the winners, runner ups and for the third position. Besides, sports uniforms are being provided to all the players and officials. One way transportation fare is also being provided to all teams.
Dr. Gaganendu Dash, General Secretary, Odisha Volleyball Association (OVA) thanked Dr. Samanta for providing all the facilities like Volleyball Grounds along with Flood lights to conduct this prestigious championship in Kandhamal & Boudh which have never hosted a State Championship before.
