Phoenix Sports Takes Wings

Phoenix Sports, the brainchild of Handball aficionado Saikrishna Hattangadi has risen like the proverbial Phoenix and is poised to soar higher and give the hitherto unheralded sport of Handball the fillip it so richly deserves and also dedicate itself to the cause of the underprivileged, disadvantaged and differently abled sections of our society through the medium of sports. Sai ( as Saikrishna is popularly known in sporting circles) has a vision for Handball and has vowed to create an environment in which Handball will thrive and prosper in the country. His abiding passion for the sport enabled him to bring together a group of sports lovers and form Phoenix Sports in early 2006. The group is an eclectic mix of persons from various walks of life and includes business persons, exporters, educationists, corporate managers, bankers, lawyers, home makers, bureaucrats, sports administrators, former players, sports enthusiasts, and parents of budding handball players. This group of founder members of Phoenix Sports shares the vision of Sai and has pledged its unstinted support to enable him to realize his dreams. The noble mission statement of Phoenix Sports is to promote and popularize Handball amongst all sections of society with special emphasis on the weaker sections and the challenged/differently abled. The endeavour has been to develop excellence in the game by organizing tournaments and training camps on a regular basis. Phoenix Sports is committed to organize events and camps for Special/ Differently abled/ Challenged children and under privileged children to unearth and tap potential talent amongst these otherwise neglected sections of society.

Phoenix Sports with generous contributions from its constituents and well wishers from the corporate world and business community successfully launched its first ‘Dawn to Dusk’ Handball Carnival in February 2006, when it organized an invitational inter school handball tournament at the Panchgani Garden (near Five Gardens) Dadar, for boys and girls in two age categories. An exhibition match was also held for Special and Challenged children, which in fact was the high point of the day long handball festival. The Special Children paraded their skills much to the delight of the goodly crowd that thronged the venue to get a piece of the action. The competitive section also included municipal schools and these children too displayed a flair for the game. The event was widely covered by both the print and electronic media. The competitive section was a true test of skill and stamina as each team was required to play several matches during the day. The Dawn to Dusk event was the precursor of several events and projects that Phoenix Sports has successfully conducted and embarked upon. Phoenix Sports also sponsored needy and challenged players for the State Olympics. Since its inception, Phoenix Sports has conducted and also help organize the following events in and around Mumbai:

1. Dawn to Dusk Inter School Invitational Handball Tournament for Boys and Girls in 2006 and 2007
2. Annual Coaching Camps for Boys and Girls ( Free for underprivileged)
3. Exhibition Matches for Special/challenged/ differently abled children
4. Bandra Gymkhana Invitational Handball Tournament for Men & Women
5. National Beach Handball Tournament for Men & Women
6. Invitational Inter Collegiate Handball tournament for Men & Women
7. Inter School Handball Tournament for Special/Challenged/Differently Abled Children in both Boys and Girls category
8. Inter District State Level Handball Tournament for Women
9. State level Handball Festival – Invitational Tournament for Men/Women/ Boys/Girls/Challenged Children
10. Inter School Cricket Tournament for Special and Challenged children
11. Inter School Football Tournament
12. Inter Collegiate Volley Ball Tournament
13. State level Inter School Handball Tournament for Special and Challenged children
14. Corporate Challenge Cricket Tournament

The plethora of events planned by Phoenix Sports is expected to give Handball, which incidentally is an Olympic Sport, the boost it is yearning for. The focus of Phoenix Sports has clearly shifted to the cause of the disadvantaged, challenged and needy sections of our society. Handball in particular and sports in general is clearly the medium through which Sai has been able to reach out to these vulnerable sections and make them an integral part of our society. Sai has been able to motivate his band of loyal and selfless members who form the core team to dream big and actualize his vision for Handball and Sports for these disadvantaged sections. Any event organized by Phoenix Sports is conspicuous by the Red T Shirts donned by its tireless volunteers who are omnipresent and ever willing to provide help at all times during the event. Despite their busy work schedules, the core team members of the Phoenix Sports create time to meet regularly and plan future events in the pipeline. The proper delegation of duties ensures that all the facets of organizing an event are taken care of. The operational efficiency exhibited by these officials of Phoenix Sports is worthy of praise and emulation. The driving force who every member of Phoenix Sports swears by is SAI SIR . His infectious zeal and enthusiasm has surely rubbed off on all the constituents and well wishers of Phoenix Sports. Though he has requested on innumerable occasions not to project him as the face of Phoenix Sports, the inescapable fact is that Sai is indeed the Commander who is at the helm steering and spearheading every endeavour that it embarks upon. His passion and enthusiasm for anything that Phoenix Sports does is to be seen to be believed. An entreaty from Sai is like a clarion call for the Phoenix Sports members, who revere him and unfailingly rise to the occasion. Sai is clearly the galvanizing agent, as he seamlessly melds together a bunch of persons from varying backgrounds and vocations for a noble cause which is service to humanity. He is the force multiplier for ensuring the success of every Phoenix Sports event. His charisma coupled with unbridled passion has endeared him to all the Phoenix Sports constituents.

Incidentally, Sai is himself an accomplished multi talented sportsman who has excelled in Basketball, Handball and Athletics. He has the unique distinction of representing Mumbai University in all three disciplines. He is also one of the most successful Handball Coaches in the city of Mumbai. The J.B. Vachcha Girls School has benefitted immensely from Sai’s Coaching skills and deep knowledge of the game. They have been the inter school champions in both age categories. Sai’s commitment to the cause of Handball is to be seen to be believed. Every morning, he is at the Panchgani Gardens imparting training to his wards and honing their skills with long hours of practice and words of wisdom. Sai truly promises to be a trail blazer and messiah for the sport of Handball which is hankering for attention in our Cricket crazy nation. His unflagging spirit and dynamism has taken him to various cities across the country and also to foreign shores to spread the mantra of Handball. Besides the unstinted support that Sai commands from the Phoenix Sports constituents, his wonderful family have been rock like in support and have provided him the encouragement as he sets out to create a world without discrimination through the medium he understands best, viz. sports. His wonderful wife Vrinda has made life more comfortable for Sai by shouldering the responsibility of grooming his two adorable daughters, Vrushali and Saili. His parents have been an integral part of all the Phoenix Sports activities and are inextricably linked to all the Phoenix Sports endeavours. The enthusiasm of the entire Hattangadi family is infectious. With the kind of undiluted passion and zeal that Sai has displayed for the cause of Phoenix Sports, he has been the wind beneath its wings and has contributed immeasurably to enable it to soar higher and higher.