Top 10 sports academies in India

Sports academies play a huge role in developing the overall game of an athlete. They look into each and every aspect of a sportsman that helps not only improve the physical aspect of the sport, but also the mental sie of things.Parents in India are opening up to the idea of enrollling their kids to a sports coaching institute so that overall development of the child is possible. Some of these institutes are run by current and retired sportspersons who want to imbibe their knowledge of the sport to the next generation. The products of these academies have done extremely well by winning medals at major international events.

#10 Bhiwani Boxing Club

Sports Authority of India(SAI) coach and former Indian boxer Jagdish Singh has been credited with making the Bhiwani Boxing Club or “BBC” . It was established by Hawa Singh, two-time Asian games gold medallist and 11-time National champion.

Four of the five boxers that represented India at the 2008 Beijing Olympics were from this boxing club. Jitender Kumar and Akhil Kumar qualified for the quarterfinals, while Vijender Singh won a bronze medal for the nation.

Bhiwani is known as Little Cuba in India as it is home to a large number of boxers.

#9 Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports

Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports, Patiala

It is Asia’s largest sports institue and is located in Patiala. The institute is referred as the "Mecca" of Indian Sports and has produced coaches of exemplary nature who have assisted various teams in national and international competitions.

The sports training facilities consist of gymnasium, swimming pool, indoor halls, cycling velodrome, squash courts, conditioning units, hockey fields (grass & synthetic), athletic track (cinder & synthetic) & outdoor courts. Sauna Bath, Steam Bath and Hydrotherapy facilities are also available for players’ recovery.

#8 Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools

Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools (BBFS) is an initiative started by former Indian skipper Bhaichung Bhutia along with Football by Carlos Queiroz (FBCQ). BBFS guides childeren between the ages of 5 and 15 with the assistance of Portugal coaches to better their football skills. Kids from underprevileged sections of the society constitute about 20-30 % of the students enrolled in this school.

#7 Sports Authority of India

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) was created by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India in 1984. It has seven regional centres at Bangalore, Bhopal, Gandhinagar, Kolkata, Sonepat, Delhi, Mumbai and Imphal and two sub-centres at Guwahati and Aurangabad.

SAI has two academic wings which provide certificate courses in physical education, sports and sports medicine - Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports (NSNIS), Patiala for coaches and the Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education (LNCPE) at Thiruvananthapuram.

#6 MRF Pace Foundation

Former Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath at the MRF Pace Foundation

Young aspiring fast bowlers from across the world are trained by Dennis Lillee in Chennai. Notable players to have trained at the institute include Javagal Srinath, RP Singh, Irfan Pathan,Munaf PAtel, Zaheer Khan, Venkatesh Prasad.

The likes of Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson undertook training at the foundation. McGrath was appointed the director of the foundation in 2012.

#5 Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy

Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA) was started in 1994 by Prakash Padukone, Vimal Kumar and Vivek Kumar and is situated in Bangalore. It imparts top-notch training and coaching to young players who are selected to the Academy on merit, and to whom training and facilities are provided on a scholarship basis.

A lot of national and international champions have been trained here.

#4 Mahesh Bhupathi Tennis Academy (MBTA)

Mahesh Bhupathi has won several tournaments across the world as a doubles player. He brings all his experience to the fore as he teaches kids and adults the nuances of tennis. MBTA started School Tennis Program to make sure that children get exposed to the game very early in their lives.

The main objective of the MBTA was to increase the accessibility of tennis by ensuring that people across all socio-economic groups have the opportunity to experience the joy of tennis. There are 35 centres spread all over the country catering to 8000 children.

#3 Mary Kom boxing academy

5-time World Champion Mary Kom has set up a boxing academy in Imphal to encourage more people to take up the sport. She said “I have a dream—a dream to create many, many more Mary Koms.”

“I want to build sufficient infrastructure for my boxing academy including separate hostels for men and women, boxing rings, free food, tracksuits, etc. The central government has given land and we have started construction that will be completed this year. But we need create better infrastructure,” She is taking the crowd funding route to generate money to ensure better facilities at the academy.

#2 GunForGlory

Gagan Narang and Pawan Singh started GunForGlory to identify potential medal winners for India in shooting. It is located in Balewadi, Pune.

The complex provides world class infrastructure and has various teams to ensure athletes get best coaching. It has brought together a bevy of foreign Coaches, a foreign Grip Maker, Sports Injury Management Team, Physiotherapist, Yoga Guru, Dietician, Masseur, Gun testing facility, utilization of SCATT, video analyzers, Equipment control & Psychologist among others.

#1 Gopichand Badminton Academy

It was founded by 2001 All England Open badminton champion Pullela Gopichand in Hyderabad. The facility trains the likes of Saina Nehwal, Parupalli Kashyap, P V Sindhu, Arundhati Pantawane, Guru Sai Dutt and Arun Vishnu.

The US$2.5 million badminton training academy contains eight courts, a swimming pool, weight training room, cafeteria and rooms to sleep.

It also served as a venue for a tournament. The 2009 Indian Open was held here while the 2009 BWF World Championships used it as a training venue.