World cue champs woo kids to beget more champs

I know India has gotten some bad press in recent times, but this article caught my attention.

More and more students in India are getting into science and technology at the colleges and universities, and soon they will exceed Americans in this field.

Pool/billiards is becoming more and more popular in India. I have been reading articles about leagues and tournaments over the years, and they are increasing.

Cue buffs of PJ Hindu Gymkhana are planning to celebrate the golden jubilee of India's first world official world title in any sport - Wilson Jones' 1958 billiards crown, which falls on December 10. Here, during the 75th National Billiards and Snooker Championships being conducted by the MP Billiards and Snooker Association, we have the GenNext of India being wooed to take up cue sport.

Over a thousand kids got to see the sport India has earned the most laurels at world level: billiards and snooker. It was at the Emerald Heights International School of Mukhteshwar Singh that cue greats of the country led by world champ Pankaj Advani descended to show the magic of the sport.

The pool champions are actually reaching the school children in India:

What mattered was that children got a fair idea of the game. When he was not playing Pankaj Advani took over the mike to guide the kids about aspects of the game with live commentary.

Devendra Joshi, another cue stalwart, explained the technicality of the sports. Another world champ, Ashok Shandilya, made it interactive, having an impromptu quiz: the question being the age of another world champ, Rupesh Shah. The lass who got it right Kunishka Jain got a prize- a cue chalk cube autographed by Pankaj Advani. Pro Aditya Mehta, Sourav Kothari, Manan Chandra, double junior chap Shahbaaz Khan,Kamal Chawla, Ashok Shandilya all played. Advani, Manan and Kothari played even though they had their men's semi-finals in the evening, all for the promotion of the sports that has given them well-paying jobs with oil firms like ONGC, IOC and BPCL.

At the end of it many students expressed a desire to play the game.

Head girl Saumya said she knew a bit about cue sports through sports teacher Mitendra Gaur who she said had explained the clock principle for striking the hand-ball - at the 9, 12, 3 and 6 o'clock positions.

Here is the article if you care to read more about pool in India: http://sports.timesofindia.indiatim..._to_beget_more_champs/articleshow/3773641.cms

Picture of Pankaj Advani, world pool champion from India, below!