1. From the founder’s desk

2. The Power of Sport

3. LeapStart Cricket League

4. 2013 Sporting Highlights

CONTENTS

"The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”- Nelson Mandela

This month we pay tribute to a man who exemplifies what every person, organization, and institution should aspire to. Nelson Mandela’s power of forgiveness is only matched by his level of determination and perseverance in the wake of hardship and oppression. Born in a racially divided country and imprisoned for 27 years, Mandela evolved with his country to become the great leader and role model that he was upon his release from prison, forgiving all wrongs done against him in the past.

Although the situation in his country and his own circumstances changed quite dramatically over the course of his life, one thing that remained constant through his freedom struggle was his determination and sometimes stubbornness to do whatever he had to do to achieve his goal of freedom for the people of South Africa from the oppression of the whites.

Determination and persistence are traits that are required by people in all walks of life. To be successful, one needs to dream and have the persistence and courage to keep trying to achieve those dreams even when faced with adversity and failure.

These are traits best taught from a young age. That is why our program and methods of teaching create an environment where every child is encouraged to do their best in whatever they do, instilling in them the courage and strength to fight through adversity in order to emerge triumphant.

FROM THE FOUNDER’S DESK

To be successful, one needs to dream and have the persistence and courage to keep trying to achieve those dreams even when

faced with adversity and failure.

December 2013 FitKids Education and Training

Sports has the power "to change the world ... to inspire ... to unite people.”

In 1994, after 4 years of being a free man in a free country, Nelson Mandela was elected as the first black presi-dent of South Africa after the first set of democratic elections in the country. Upon taking office, Nelson Mandela faced many problems of which his primary concern was uniting the different races of South Africa who were still divided through anger and fear. The following year, he saw the perfect opportunity to enforce a point of unity, which before had served as a point of division. This came in the form of hosting the 1995 Rugby World Cup.

Nelson Mandela put his support behind the Springboks, which was the national rugby team and was predomi-nantly white, for the World Cup. The team played their part by learning the song Nikosi Sikelele Afrika (God Bless Africa) and singing it before every game. This song was sung by the blacks during their freedom struggle and is now their National Anthem. When Mandela stepped out for the first match he was booed, not only by the blacks but also by a portion of the Afrikaners who were afraid of repercussions. This fear and aggression was short lived because soon enough the whole country was behind their team as they progressed in the tournament.

The Springboks faced their biggest challenge of the tournament when they were pitted against the All Blacks of New Zealand. They were the clear underdogs and weren’t expected to do well, much less win. Francois Pienaar, the captain, later said that when they were in the dressing room before the match and Nelson Mandela walked in to wish them luck, there was a surge of motivation and positivity that felt almost magical. That was the first time the players realized they were part of something bigger than just a World Cup final!

The players fulfilled their destiny and defeated the All Blacks 15-12. When Nelson Mandela walked onto the pitch in his Springbok jersey to hand the trophy over to his captain, Francois Pienaar, he shook his hand and thanked him for what he had done for South Africa. Francois Pienaar, with tears in his eyes along with the rest of the stadium and city, instead thanked Mandela for what he had done for the country. That day the streets of South Africa, whether in the cities or the townships, were all filled with people dancing and celebrating well into the night. The feelings were almost as much about relief and reconciliation as they were about joy and celebration. That day Mandela was able to see his vision of a ‘Rainbow Nation’ materialize and his dream start to come true.

This is the power that sport possesses, cleverly brought out through sport by a man who struggled to see any-thing but the good in people!

- Nelson Mandela

The Power Of Sport

LEAPSTART CRICKET LEAGUE

PATIALA

TRICHY TRICHY

PATIALABANGALORE

BANGALORE BANGALORE

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2013 SPORTING HIGHLIGHTS

• Sachin Tendulkar retires from all forms of International Cricket after his 200th test against West Indies in India.• Sir Alex Ferguson retires after winning Manchester United’s 20th title, in his 27th year at the club, leaving them as the most successful club in England.• Lance Armstrong, the seven time Tour de France winner, was discredited after he refused to fight allegations of him doping during the peak of his career.• Rafael Nadal returned to the ATP circuit after a knee injury and won the French and US Opens. He captured Rank 1 with a win-loss record of 75-7. • Sebastian Vettel wins his 4th consecutive World Drivers’ Championship in 2013, after a record setting feat of 9 consecutive victories.• Five-time title-holder Vishwanathan Anand is defeated in the 2013 World Chess Championships in Chennai, by 23 year old Norwegian, Magnus Carlsen. • Andy Murray becomes the first British man to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry had triumphed in 1936.• The first edition of the Hockey Indian League was held in the beginning of 2013 and was won by the Ranchi Rhinos.• The first edition of the Indian Badminton League was held in 2013 and was won by the Hyderabad Hotshots.• Mumbai Indians won their first IPL title after defeating the Chennai Super Kings in the final at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.• India now has 2 shuttlers in the world top 10 rankings with Saina Nehwal at no. 4 and PV Sindhu in the 10th spot.

India beat Uzbekistan and South Africa in its bid to host the U-17 FIFA World Cup in 2017. This will be the biggest football tournament that has ever been hosted on Indian soil as the top teams will compete for the title. This tourna-ment has hosted some of the biggest names in football today, from Cesc Fabregas to Ronaldinho and most recently, Neymar. This type of talent is what attracts scouts from the top clubs in the world such as Real Madrid of Spain, Manchester United of England and AC Milan of Italy.

This tournament will give the young talent in India a fantastic platform to showcase their talent against the best in the world. As hosts, India gets a direct entry into the tournament and so will go up against the likes of Brazil, Spain, England and Italy. This will be India’s first appearance in any form of football World Cup since we declined the opportunity to play in the 1950 World Cup.

At a time when sport in India is going through a transformation, bringing in private investors and new interest, this presents us with an ideal opportunity to take our commitment towards the development of football to the next level. As hosts, we will have to develop the required infrastructure such as stadiums, pitches, accommodation, roads, etc. to accommodate not only the teams, but also the travelling supporters. This will be the perfect opportunity to put behind us the fiasco that was the Commonwealth Games in 2010, and to show the world that India is not only capable but also well placed to host international sporting events. This tournament will also serve another purpose by providing the young, budding talent in India a platform on which to showcase their talent and to aspire to in the future. This will also serve as a means of showing the world and indeed most of the country, that although cricket is still the most popular sport in the country, we are ready for a second sport toward which we can show our support and interest.

India to host under-17 World Cup 2017