A team of yoga athletes from the US is set to participate in the maiden World Yogasana Championship to be held in Ahmedabad from June 4 to 8.
On May 30, the Indian Consulate in New York welcomed members of the US Yogasana team ahead of their departure for India. Deputy Consul General Vishal J Harsh met the athletes and wished them good luck as they head to the first championship of its kind in Gujarat.
Teams from at least 75 countries are expected to take part in the competition, which is intended to take yoga to the next level as a sport.
Organised by the World Yogasana Federation and backed by the Ministry of Ayush, the teams will “test a 5,000-year-old tradition under standardised rules of precision, balance, flexibility, and degree of difficulty,” Yogajala.com noted.
The event is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s long-standing effort to make yoga an Olympic sport.
Competitors will be judged in four official categories — Traditional, Artistic, Rhythmic, and Athletic Yogasana. Teams will be marked on a scale similar to Olympic ballet performances, on parameters such as posture alignment, hold time, transitions and level of difficulty.
According to a press release issued by Yoga Association USA, the United States Yogasana Sports Federation (USYSF), in collaboration with the United States Yoga Association and World Yogasana, has announced an 11-member Team USA for the championship.
The delegation will be led by Balwinder Singh, founder and president of Yoga Association USA and USYSF. The team, heading to India, was selected following quarterfinal trials held in Connecticut in April.
Athletes ranging in age from 10 to 55 years will compete in youth and senior categories.
Priti Dhariwal, a certified yoga instructor and member of the USYSF delegation, said yoga is more than physical exercise.
“It is about finding peace within yourself and creating happiness from within,” she said.
