6th Edition of Khelo India Youth Games

The 6^th edition of Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) is currently underway, happening from 19th January to 31st January 2024, across four cities in Tamil Nadu: Chennai, Trichy, Madurai, and Coimbatore.

About: KIYG is a national-level, multi-disciplinary sports competition for school and college students in India.

• The games are held annually in January or February and are part of the government's Khelo India initiative.
• It aims to promote sports culture and identify sporting talent at the grassroots level.
• The previous 5 editions of the Youth Games have been held in Delhi, Pune, Guwahati, Panchkula and Bhopal.

Format: It is held in two categories, namely under-17-year-old school students and under-21 college students.

• It operates in a team championship format, wherein the medals earned by individual athletes or teams contribute to the overall medal tally of their respective state or Union Territory (UT).
• Upon the event's conclusion, the state or UT securing the highest count of gold medals is declared the winner.
• No other team barring Maharashtra and Haryana have won the KIYG title to date.

6^th edition of KIYG: A total of 933 medals (278 gold, 278 silver and 377 bronze) are up for grabs across 26 sports at KIYG, Tamil Nadu.

Squash is making its KIYG debut this year, while Silambam, a form of indigenous martial arts, is featured as a demonstration sport.

Mascot: Veera Mangai.

Rani Velu Nachiyar, fondly called Veera Mangai, was an Indian queen who waged a war against British colonial rule.

Also, the logo for the games incorporates the figure of poet Thiruvalluvar.

The Khelo India Winter Games 2024 will take place in Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir. The recently unveiled mascot, a Snow Leopard named 'Sheen-e She' or Shan, adds a unique touch to the event.