Chennai, Oct 29 (PTI) In a major boost to para-sports, Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Thursday handed over cash incentive cheques totalling Rs 6.85 crore to nine exceptional para-athletes from Tamil Nadu who brought laurels to the nation at the 5th Asian Para Games held in Japan.
Vijay presented championship trophies to the top three districts of the Chief Minister’s Trophy 2026 and also officially launched the Sportsmen Development Allowance Scheme at the valedictory ceremony at Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here.
Thulasimathi Murugesan, who won a gold and 2 silver medals in the Para-Badminton was presented a cheque for Rs 1.75 crore, Naveen Sivakumar - Para-Badminton who won 1 gold and 1 bronze received Rs 1.05 crore, while Solairaj Dharmaraj Para-Athletics received Rs 75 lakh, Nithya Sree Rs 80 lakh, Manisha Ramadass and J D Madan Rs 60 lakh each, Sivarajan Solaimalai and Kasthuri Rajamani Rs 50 lakh each, and Baby Sahana was provided Rs 30 lakh by the chief minister on the occasion.
The multi-tier sports extravaganza (CM Trophy) concluded with Chennai district clinching the coveted first place in the state-level medal tally with a stellar haul of 319 medals - 142 gold, 97 silver, and 80 bronze. Chennai district Collector S Malathi Helen, along with sports officials and athletes, received the winner's trophy from the CM.
Chengalpattu district secured the second spot with 143 medals - 64 gold, 43 silver, and 36 bronze and district Collector M Veerappan received the award.
Coimbatore district finished third with 118 medals - 27 gold, 37 silver, and 54 bronze - and was adjudged third and the prize was received by district Collector Kranthi Kumar Pati.
A total of 27,82,173 athletes registered online for the 2026 edition, which featured 45 disciplines across 5 categories, 38 districts, and 6 zones, incorporating 7 newly added sports, a release said.
Out of the 10,36,543 participants at the district and zonal tiers, 32,603 winners advanced to the state-level finals held across 10 districts. The total prize pool allocated for the entire tournament stood at Rs 38 crore, with Rs 21.34 crore distributed at the regional levels and Rs 17.04 crore awarded to state-level winners.
Expanding the state's sports infrastructure, Chief Minister Vijay digitally inaugurated the newly constructed Tamil Nadu Olympic Aquatics Academy at Pirappanvalasai in Ramanathapuram district, built at a cost of Rs 42.90 crore. He also opened a brand-new Multipurpose Sports Complex at the Government College of Engineering campus in Karuppur, Salem, constructed at an outlay of Rs 20 crore.
Furthering athlete welfare, the newly launched Sportsmen Development Allowance Scheme will benefit 2,600 sportspersons training at various Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) hostels and specialised sports centres.
The scheme, which has an annual budgetary allocation of Rs 1.77 crore, will provide a monthly personal expense allowance of Rs 500 to athletes in standard hostels/special centres and Rs 1,000 per month to those training at primary sports centre hostels, the release said.
The high-profile event was attended by state ministers, members of the legislative assembly, board chairpersons, Chief Secretary M Sai Kumar, senior government officials, coaches, sports experts, and representatives of various sports associations.
