The International Purple Fest, Goa 2024 the much-anticipated event, continued its spectacular journey into the world of sports on its second day, captivating audiences with a day filled with exhilarating competitions and unforgettable moments.
While the day witnessed a slight drizzle to start with, the persons with disabilities, visually-impaired and special athletes were never going to be affected by the weather as they relished the grand platform to display their indomitable spirit across various sports events lined up for the Day 2.
Renowned as a hotbed of football in the country, Goa won both their matches in the men’s and women’s five-a-side unified football tournament that kicked off on Tuesday, at the new GSUDA ground, Campal.
Comprising three ‘Special’ players and two partners in the playing team, Goa men’s team blanked Bihar 4-0. Venson Paes scored 2 goals, while Francis Parisapogu and Joel Rodrigues netted 1 goal each. In the women’s unified football event, Goa defeated Kerala 3-0. Kajal Jadhav registered 2 goals, while Harsha Devidas scored 1 goal.
Social Welfare Minister Subhash Phal Dessai; NRI Commissioner Adv Narendra Sawaikar; State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities Guruprasad Pawaskar graced the inaugural of the unified football event.
Over at Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Stadium at Taleigao Plateau; three players including top seed Jorgen Magnusson of Sweden are in joint lead in the International Chess Championship for visually impaired.
Magnusson, and the Indian duo of Patra Subhendu Kumar (Odisha), Makwana Ashvin (Gurajat) have 2 points each after the end of second round. Uzbekistan’s Kimsanboyev Axadxon and Kyrgyz Republic’s Arstanbekov Dzhanysh are on 1.5 points each. Goa’s Kavlekar Sanjay also has 1.5 points in his kitty. Five more rounds are to be played and the title winner will bag Rs. 35,000 on the final day i.e 13th January.
An unique chess event on Tuesday evening, saw the blind and visually impaired take on sighted players with the motive behind the exhibition game being to draw attention to the ability of the players.
The National tennis event for blind kicked off at Clube Tennis de Gaspar Dias at Miramar. A total of 19 players are taking part out of which 9 are totally blind while 10 are partially blind. Maharashtra, Kerala, Telangana and Karnataka have sent players for the tennis event.
In Boccia event at Dr KB Hedgewar HS-Cujira, 42 players from 9 states – Gujarat, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh Telangana and Maharashtra; have been classified and action will commence on Wednesday.
In unified badminton at Campal, Goa women have been grouped alongside Kerala and Chandigarh. The hosts men’s team is placed along with Bihar and HP. In all six teams are in the fray in the men’s and women’s competition each.
The qualifying matches were played on Tuesday and the teams were drawn accordingly for the league round that begins on Wednesday.
In wheelchair cricket, Goa suffered a big defeat to Karnataka today. All out for a paltry 20 runs in 7.5 overs, the hosts were hapless as Karnataka raced to 23/0 in one over. In the other matches, Rajasthan beat Telangana by 94 runs, Delhi beat UP by 37 runs, Mumbai beat MP by 7 wickets.
Unified Beach Volleyball event for men and women kicked off at Miramar late on Tuesday evening. Odisha, Kerala, Pondicherry, Bihar and Goa are participating in the event that will conclude on 11th January.
The Purple Sports action is expected to be at its peak on Wednesday with the National Para-Athletics Championship set to take the centrestage at Bambolim Athletics Stadium at 10am while blind football will be conducted at Don Bosco ground, Panaji. Apart from cricket, football, lawn tennis, boccia and chess; unified beach volleyball is also likely to be a crowd-puller at Miramar beach from 6pm.
Purple Fest continues to be a beacon of excitement, uniting communities through the universal language of sports. As the festival progresses, anticipation builds for the upcoming days filled with even more thrilling competitions and memorable experiences.
