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NT Bureau
Chennai. July 28:

        Corporate houses in the city are gearing up for a big battle. However, it is not a boardroom battle. Instead, they will be matching their wits in the sporting arena.

        In a first-of-its-kind initiative called the Chennai Corporate Sports Olympiad, brought by F5 Ventures in association with Hallmark Infrastructure and Job Zebra, teams from various corporate companies would participate in various sports events and vie for the 'Corporate Olympiad' trophy.

        The 'Olympiad' would kick off 28 July and go on for a period of two months, with matches scheduled for weekends. The events would be held at venues like SDAT Aquatic complex, Nehru stadium, Gymkhana Golf Club and SDAT Tennis stadium among others.

        India's leading Table Tennis player A Sharath Kamal here last night, unveiled the trophy and praised the organisers for conceiving such an event.

        Sharath Kamal hoped that the awareness created by these events could be a launch pad for the corporates to understand the requirements of sports fraternities, who in turn could help promising players develop.

        The disciplines included in the 'Olympiad' are: Cricket, football, volleyball, basketball, athletics, swimming, tennis, golf, bowling, karting, snooker, table tennis, badminton, carrom and chess.

        Later, sharing his thoughts with News Today, the India TT champ said he would be leaving to Spain in September to play for his club in the first division league. Now on a holiday, the world number 73, is eyeing a spot in the German league.

        He thanked his employer Indian Oil Corporation for supporting him.

        Sharath Kamal said there was no dearth of talent in India but sponsorship is not easy to find, which in turn stunts the development of players.