🏐 International Representation: U-15 Volleyball Championship
🏆 Event & Performance
Three young girl athletes from Himachal Pradesh were honoured for representing India in the U-15 International Volleyball Competition held in Shangluo, China from December 4–13, 2025.
India competed at the ISF U-15 World School Volleyball Championship 2025, where both boys’ and girls’ teams took part. In the boys’ event, Team India secured a bronze medal, defeating Brazil — marking one of the country’s notable performances at this under-15 world-level school championship.
(Himachal’s honoured athletes were from the girls’ contingent that participated on the international stage.)
👩🎓 The Athletes & Honour Ceremony
🎖️ Who Were Honoured
The Directorate of School Education in Shimla officially felicitated the three athletes:
- Khyati Dhanta from Jubbal
- Preeti from Kotkhai
- Riya from Sirmaur district
These players train at the Thakur Ram Lal Sports Hostel in Jubbal, which is one of the key sports training centres nurturing young talent in the region.
🏅 Recognition by Officials
The Education Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Rohit Thakur, led the felicitation ceremony held at the Thakur Ramlal Swarn Jayanti Government Senior Secondary School (Centre of Excellence) in Jubbal (Shimla district). He praised the athletes for their dedication and achievement in representing India internationally at such a young age.
The minister also highlighted the role of sports hostels and training programmes in helping young athletes excel, and reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to improving sports infrastructure and support for budding sportspersons in Himachal Pradesh.
📢 Government & Sports Development Context
Himachal Pradesh has been actively supporting youth sports through:
✔ Sports hostels training hundreds of young athletes in disciplines such as volleyball, kabaddi and badminton.
✔ Increased investments in sports facilities, diet allowances, and coaching for players representing the state.
These initiatives aim to promote competitive sports from a grassroots level and nurture talent capable of competing at national and international levels.
🌟 Significance
- The honour highlights young Himachali athletes’ breakthrough onto the world stage, inspiring other young players in the state.
- It reflects the success of sports hostels and training programmes in smaller hill regions.
- It contributes to an ongoing focus on youth sports development and international exposure for Indian school-age athletes.