KATHMANDU, JUNE 19

A three-member national golf team is on Thursday leaving for India to undergo threemonth training at the Tarun Sardesai Golf Academy in Bangalore.

Top amateur golfers Subash Tamang and Sadbhav Acharya will stay at the Academy for three months, while Youth Development Director of Nepal Golf Association and head coach of 19th Asian Games Deepak Acharya will accompany the players to Bangalore.

National Sports Council Member Secretary Tanka Lal Ghising bade farewell to the team on Sunday.

The 19-year-old Tamang, who stole the limelight after winning two gold medals in the 13th South Asian Games home soil in 2019, will undergo intensive training at the Academy for three months, while the 16-year-old Acharya will continue his studies at the Academy apart from golf training. Acharya will also attend online classes at Kathmandu World School, which has made special arrangements for him.

According to the NGA, Tamang and Acharya got 50 and 25 per cent scholarships respectively at the Academy.

While the National Sports Council and Nepal Olympic Committee have assured to bear the expenses of Tamang for the training, Acharya is going to the Academy on his own expenses.

After the training, Tamang and Acharya will take part in the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship at the Amata Golf Club in Thailand in October.

They were selected for the event based on their world rankings. Tamang is at the 262nd position in world amateur ranking, while Acharya is at 2,670 position. They will also take part in the South Asian Games and Asian Games apart from other international events.

'We have managed the best of the facilities for these young golfers in Bangalore, which is a world class academy,' said NGA Youth Development Director Deepak Acharya. 'We have identified nutrition and injury management as prime issues in them. The academy will assess their needs and plan accordingly. Apart from skill training, the academy will deal with each and every aspect of the game in the next three months,' he added.

Acharya said the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship in Thailand will be a reality check for the golfers after undergoing training. 'We will immediately know the results of the training as these golfers will be participating in an international event in Bangkok just after the completion of the course,' he said. 'As we have set a target of winning gold medal in the Asian Games and sneak into the top 10 in world amateur ranking before the 2024 Olympic Games, the NGA will make further plans to fulfill the goal,' he added.

NSC Member Secretary Ghising vowed to help athletes with potential of breaking previous best marks. 'No Nepali athlete has won gold medal in the Asian Games so far and we need to make a plan to at least move one step ahead,' said Ghising. 'We are ready to support the association who come up with concrete plan and programme and it implies with golf as well. The high-performance team at the NSC will assess the reports received from national associations and we will take decisions based on the recommendation.'

NGA President Tashi Ghale said the association was committed in its goals of making it to the top 10 in world ranking by 2024 Olympics. 'The players need to take part in maximum events to improve in ranking and the NGA needed support from stakeholders to get the job done,' he said. 'As these players have huge potentials in excelling in the world stage, the sports fraternity should push them from behind,' Ghale added.

A version of this article appears in the print on June 20, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.