Karanam Malleswari to start weightlifting academy

Wednesday, April 26, 2017 

Karanam Malleswari, champion weightlifter will start an academy to train children with the aim of winning gold medals in the 2024 and 2028 Olympics.

The academy will be run with the assistance of Andhra Pradesh Sports Authority and will be located at a school in the city and would be shifted to Srikakulam later where she had been allotted land. Speaking to media, she said that the training is likely to begin from June 1 in a tie-up with a school where the children also can pursue studies in the evening.

She said that 25 children from Srikakulam, 19 from Vizianagaram and five from the city had been selected. She aims to select 100 children and train them. It would take about one and a half years to assess whether the children had the necessary bone and muscle strength and other attributes, mainly talent and interest to shape up as medal prospects. She said that coaching should ideally begin at the age of eight so that the medal prospects should reach that age by 18 years and continue till 25 years. The expenditure for food, nutrition supplements and equipment for training would be borne by SAAP, she said