New York, Jun 2: A team of Yoga athletes from the United States is heading to India to participate in the maiden World Yogasana Championship to be held in Ahmedabad from June 4 to 8.
The United States Yogasana Sports Federation (USYSF), in collaboration with the United States Yoga Association (USYA) and World Yogasana, has announced the official Team USA delegation for the championship, according to a press release issued by Yoga Association USA.
Yoga Association USA and USYSF founder and president Balwinder Singh will lead the 11-member US contingent at the event, it said.
The team, heading to India, was selected following quarterfinal trials held in Connecticut in April. Athletes in the delegation will compete in youth and senior categories, with participants ranging in age from 10 to 55 years.
Ahead of their departure, members of the US Yogasana team visited the Consulate General of India in New York last week and met Deputy Consul General Vishal Harsh. The Consulate wished the athletes success at the championship.
The event is expected to bring together athletes, officials, and representatives from over 60 countries, “advancing Yogasana as a globally recognised competitive sport while fostering international unity, wellness, and cultural exchange”, the release said.
Competitors will participate in seven official Yogasana categories, including artistic and rhythmic yoga divisions, where participants will be assessed on strength, flexibility, balance, endurance and precision under global standardised judging criteria.
The USYSF and USYA, affiliated with World Yogasana, work to promote Yogasana as a competitive sport through athlete development, national competitions, education, and international representation, the release said.
Priti Dhariwal, a certified yoga instructor and member of the official USYSF delegation, said yoga is more than physical exercise.
“It is about finding peace within yourself and creating happiness from within,” she said.
Dhariwal has spent more than two decades helping senior citizens in Bergen County, New Jersey, improve their physical, mental and emotional well-being through yoga, meditation and laughter yoga.
Among her students is Bernese, who celebrated her 106th birthday in May and continues to practise chair yoga and meditation twice a week. Another student, Norma Adams, is set to turn 92 and has been practising yoga on the mat for the past eight years. (PTI)
