agencies
HYDERABAD, May 23: The inaugural edition of the Indian Taekwondo Premier League (TPL) will take place from June 22 to June 26 at the Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.
"The men's League will be followed by an international league in Doha, Qatar. Thereafter, we will have a League for women and then for kids, becoming the first all-year-round league in India," Venkata K Ganjam, Founder Director said in an event, here on Sunday evening. Founder Director Duvvuri Ganesh said TPL would be played out in a team format. "Each team will boast of five top players. We have restricted ourselves to the 58.1kg-67.9kg category to keep the competition fast and thrilling," he said.
The TPL will see as many as four women taking up the mantle of team owners. Moreover, Navneetha Bachu, the third founder-director, is also the first woman taekwondo trainer in India.
"Taekwondo is not just a sport. It empowers women by helping them to learn a self-defensive skill. TPL will educate and encourage all girls to take up this sport," Navneetha said.
Srishti Rana (Haryana Hunters), the Miss Asia Pacific World 2013, leads this brigade of women pathbreakers. The other lady franchise owners are Ruchita Mittal (Maharashtra Avengers), a diamond businesswoman, Shilpa Patel (Bengaluru Ninjas), an entrepreneur in hospitality, and Isha Patel (Chennai Strikers).
The other team owners present during the event were Shyam Patel (Delhi Warriors), owner of Global Sports, Allu Venkat Reddy (Hyderabad Gliders) Chairman of real estate giants iMark Developers, Vijay Kumar Bhansali (Gujarat Thunders), a social activist, and Bijit Gogoi (Assam Heroes), who is Mr India 2006.
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