Chennai beaches fire thousand sporting dreams

Chennai: Amid the ever-expanding concrete jungle, the city’s beaches are an oasis of space and joy for countless youth. The sands of Besant Nagar, Thiruvanmiyur, Palavakkam and Kottivakkam beaches reverberate with the sounds of frisbee, rugby and volleyball players every evening. Although some alarmist activists and unhelpful civic officials try to curtail the healthy habit of scores of youngsters, games continue to thrive on public beaches.

It’s impossible to imagine the Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro without hundreds of men and women playing volleyball and foot volley. Nature has also bestowed Chennai with abundant coastal space and people should be encouraged to play a variety of sport which in no way disturbs others. Beaches are the most democratic and egalitarian places in the city and efforts to keep them out of bounds of ordinary citizens must be resisted, say coaches and players.

Arul Venkatesan, a rugby coach, says he learned the game on R.T.O beach, Thiruvanmiyur.

“The R.T.O beach is part of my life. I have played for India and I owe the honour to it. I’m teaching rugby to around 100 poor corporation school students in the same place where I learned it. With no ground available in the vicinity to teach rugby free of cost, I feel the beach is nature’s gift to us. It’s easier to attract students to rugby because everyone loves to come to the beach, which is accessible to all in the locality,” he said.

Venkatesan said his team has acquired admirers from all sections of the society. “From retired IAS officers, curious children to casual visitors, a lot of people enjoy watching us play. There is no better place than our beaches to market a new sport like rugby,” he added.

Manu Karan, founder and president of Ultimate Frisbee, said, “The state government should support beach sports in a big way. The city is sitting on a gold mine. Unfortunately, though, we have been facing problems of late to conduct tournaments on Besant Nagar beach.

For example, we have been forced to move a national event this month end from Besant Nagar to Marina after a hue and cry raised by an activist. We are still keeping our fingers crossed over Corporation’s permission to conduct it on Marina. I had to say no when a suggestion was mooted to hold the world championship in Chennai”. He added Chennaihas the potential to become the Copacabana of India.

Karan and his academy have used frisbee to provide a platform for children from nearby slums to showcase their talent. “I can show a lot of players from in and around Besant Nagar who have appeared in tournaments abroad after learning the game at our academy. Frisbee is one of the simplest sports in the world. All you need is a disc and eight plastic cones. It doesn’t discriminate against the poor. We welcome everyone who is willing to learn the sport with open arms,” he said.

The frisbee pioneer in the city said accusations that games on beaches affect coastal eco-system are unfounded. “We play barefoot, so we ensure that no dangerous objects are littered on the field. We never leave any trash behind. Keeping the beach clean is a mantra that is ingrained in the DNA of all frisbee players. Eminent environmentalist Nityanand Jayaraman has given a clean chit to us. I can assure you that as true sportsmen, we will keep fighting,” he added.