KIBG provide platform to showcase skills on natural surface: Mandaviya

Union minister of youth affairs and sports Mansukh Mandaviya said that the Khelo India Beach Games are providing athletes with a new platform to express their skills on a naturally beautiful surface while helping to build a strong sporting culture in the country.
The second edition of the Khelo India Beach Games (KIBG) will be held at the Blue Flag Ghoghla Beach in Diu from January 5 to 10, with more than 2,100 participants, including over 1,100 athletes, expected to take part. The Games are being organised by the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu under the technical supervision of the Sports Authority of India and national sports federations.
A total of 29 states and Union Territories are participating this year. Competitions will be held in eight sports — beach volleyball, beach soccer, beach sepak takraw, beach kabaddi, pencak silat, open water swimming, mallakhamb and tug of war. Of these, six disciplines — volleyball, soccer, sepak takraw, kabaddi, pencak silat and open water swimming — are medal sports, with 32 gold medals at stake. Mallakhamb and tug of war will be non-medal events.
Mandaviya recalled that the first edition of the Beach Games generated considerable excitement among participants. He said that new sporting platforms were being created to allow athletes to enjoy the sports they love, in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of fostering a culture of sports to build a healthier youth population. He added that more new Khelo India events would be introduced in 2026 and that sports were being used as a means to bring the nation together and spread joy through competition.
The minister further stated that Khelo India events were aligned with the objectives of the Khelo Bharat Niti. He said the endeavour was to make sports a mass movement and an integral part of the social fabric for overall upliftment. He also noted that events such as the Beach Games help showcase India’s natural beauty to the world through sports.
Manipur, Maharashtra and Nagaland finished first, second and third respectively in the medal standings in the inaugural edition of the Games. All three states won five gold medals each and were separated only by the number of silver medals. Maharashtra and Nagaland are expected to challenge Manipur’s title defence in the second edition.
The opening ceremony of KIBG 2026 will be held on Monday evening at Ghoghla Beach. Administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu and Lakshadweep Praful Patel and Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha will be present on the occasion.
Teams have been arriving in Diu since Saturday. Competition will begin on Monday with beach kabaddi and beach soccer matches. In the previous edition, Haryana dominated beach kabaddi, while Kerala (men) and Odisha (women) won gold medals in beach soccer.
The Khelo India Beach Games are being conducted under the sports competition and talent development vertical of the Khelo India Scheme. The first edition was held in Diu from May 19 to May 24, 2025. The initiative of the Union sports ministry aims to promote beach sports and expand the reach and popularity of disciplines played on sand and in water bodies.