Sakshi Malik appointed wrestling director

The Haryana government has appointed Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik as the wrestling director of Maharshi Dayanand University in her native town of Rohtak, near the capital.

Announcing this, Haryana sports and youth affairs minister Anil Vij, said that Sakshi will be given Rs 21 lakh and a plot measuring 500 square yards.

The sports minister was speaking at a function at Rohtak late on Sunday where hockey players Savita Punia and Poonam Rani and boxer Virender Singh were also felicitated.

Vij said that during his visit to Rio de Janeiro during Olympics, he met players, coaches and other people of various countries to learn about different aspects of specialities of players and sports.

“By adopting Haryana’s sports model across the country, India could leave countries like the USA behind in terms of medal tally. Therefore, the policy of ‘Catch them Young’ would have to be adopted,” he asserted.

The Haryana government has has decided to open 20 sports nurseries in the state, for which more than 550 applications have been received, the minister said.