MUMBAI: The third edition of the Future Kabaddi Heroes (FKH) programme, a comprehensive talent scouting and development initiative to foster and nurture future champions, will commence here on Tuesday.
A brainchild of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Mashal Sports, the FKH programme, initiated a couple of years ago, has been divided into three phases.
In its first phase this year, the talent hunt will be conducted across 11 cities, starting here on Tuesday. The other locations would be Patna, Chandigarh, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Lucknow, Nagpur, Guwahati, Bengaluru, Jaipur, and the Junior Nationals.
The cities have been chosen on the basis of expert assessment of Kabaddi talent identified in local tournaments held there in the past.
Last year the programme received an overwhelming response from over 3420 participants. Post a rigorous three-stage selection process, 85 players finally made it to the Pro Kabaddi 2018 auction pool.
Through its prior two editions, the Future Kabaddi Heroes programme has brought to the forefront, young players such as Nitesh Kumar (UP Yodha), the Best Defender in Pro Kabaddi Season 6 and the first defender in the history of the PKL to reach 100 tackle points in a single season; Naveen Kumar (Dabang Delhi) the youngest player in Season 6 who is among the top 10 raiders.
Launching the third edition of the programme, Anupam Goswami, PKL League Commissioner, said: “With the FKH programme, our aim is to identify promising talent and build successive generations of higher quality Kabaddi players.”
