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Sesa Football Academy’s 2018 convocation held in Goa

Sesa Football Academy’s 2018 convocation held in Goa (Photo courtesy: Sesa Football Academy)

The Vedanta Group is set to continue its strategic roadmap to actively foster skill development in sports across the country through the SESA Football Academy in Goa.

In a classic example of mentor them young and watch them grow, Vedanta’s SESA Football Academy (SFA) felicitated young graduating students of its academy at a high energy Convocation Ceremony event held today at the International Centre of Goa.

SESA Football Academy, which aims to spot, nurture, and create conditions for discovering, and building talent for Indian football, is the CSR flagship brand of the multinational conglomerate, Vedanta. The organization through its SESA Football Academy (SFA), has contributed immensely to the development of football players in Goa since its inception in 1999. The academy, which runs on a residential basis, imparts systematic and scientific football training through its team of national and international football experts, grooming youngsters to become full-fledged professional players. The academy takes care of the formal education of the trainees, during the four-year training period, at its Sankhali premises.

The Convocation Ceremony attended by core team leaders of SESA Football Academy and Goa’s star football and sports enthusiasts, felicitated 15 students of 2014-18 batch. Namely, Ashley Cardozo, Kanta Alisas Dravin, Sunil Mandrekar, Dhiraj Chauhan, Vighnesh G. Shetgaonkar, Vishnu Sazro Gosavi, Kunal S. Salgaonkar, Cyrus Canvi Noronha, Dylan Fernandes, Malcolm Mervin Gonsalves, Cavin Soares, Lionel D’Souza, Mark Agnelo Barreto, Anil Subhash Chawan, Gaunkar Roanal Camilo and Rocky Jovhan Fernandes.

Taking forward the Vedanta Group’s vision in equipping participants with skills in sports in technical and non-technical areas of development, and achieving the milestone of being the best football academy in India by 2019, President, SESA Football Academy, Annanya Agarwal said, “Sports can inspire and engage youth in a tremendous way, and with the growing interest around sports we at SFA have taken significant steps in providing professional training to budding footballers and nurture them to be the next heroes of the nation. Sesa Community Development Foundation (SCDF) has immensely contributed through various CSR initiatives to the local communities in the past and would continue to do so.”

Since inception, SFA has trained more than 150 footballers at the residential academy and has made tremendous impact on the football fraternity in Goa as well as across India. Past graduates from SFA today served in the national teams, Indian Super League clubs, I-League clubs of India and football clubs in Goa. Including seven players who have earned the national team cap and six players who played the elite ISL last season. Presently 38 boys from Goa and 28 youngsters from across the country and Zambia are a part of the 2017 batch.

Former Indian skipper and Advisor to SESA Football Academy, Baichung Bhutia, present during the Convocation Ceremony also said, “Goa brings back a bundle of childhood memories. SFA has been doing some great work for the football community by grooming young players and producing good football talent. It is good to see these young players get such amazing guidance and facilities.”

Ably supported by the international expertise of UEFA Pro License coach from Catalonia, Spain, Technical Director, SFA, Eduard Batlle Basart; CEO – Football Project for Vedanta SESA, Goa, Sukhvinder Singh reiterated Vedanta’s absolute commitment to community development through skill development and sports for youth, and football in particular. The academy which also has a strong focus on empowering girls and women through their engagement in football training and coaching, will continue its sponsorship association for the Second Edition Women’s Football League, which kicks-off this July.

Announcing Vedanta’s vision towards achieving the milestone, Mr Singh shared, “The time is apt as the nation now sees a great amount of interest generated around football. At SFA, we aim to raise the standard of football by providing professional training to these children and creating a conducive environment for this sport in India.”

(Sesa Football Academy)