Sunil Chhetri, Rahul Dravid award scholarship to Boost 'Play the Pros' winners

Boost, one of GSK's leading brands in the health food drinks category, provided an opportunity to young kids to play with Sunil Chhetri as a part of Boost 'Play the Pros' program.

Veteran Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid also participated in the event and spoke to kids about the importance of sports and stamina.

The programme also involved seminars educating the children and parents on various aspects of the sport like nutrition and psychology.

Two winner kids were identified as budding football talent and were awarded one year residential scholarship sponsored by Boost in its endeavour to promote upcoming sports like football in India.

While 10-year-old Guru Kiran was one of the winners, it was interesting to see 13-year-old girl, Monica Nalso bagging the scholarship to train with BFC soccer schools.

Football as a sport is growing in popularity not only among boys but among girls as well.

Boost and BFC had joined hands earlier this year to develop football talent at grass roots by organizing an inter-school soccer shield which witnessed participation by over 60 school teams in Bengaluru across different age groups - U10, U12 and U14.

The winning teams of the soccer shield also participated in the event and learned football tips from BFC players like Sunil Chettri, Udanta Singh and Gurpreet.

Boost and BFC also conducted a coach education program where football coaches were given an opportunity to take part in the AIFF 'C' license course which was conducted in the city for the first time.

"It was an immense pleasure to witness over 250 kids playing football with so much passion. At a time when children are addicted to virtual gaming platforms, Boost Play the Pros platform not only gave the kids a sense of competition but also a reason to be out on a field performing physically. Going forward, I will ensure that the next edition of soccer shield becomes even more bigger and better," said Sunil Chhetri, club and national team captain.

Receiving the award at the ceremony, parent of Guru Kiran said, "We are delighted that our kid has emerged as the winner of Boost Play the Pros and will be able to move one step closer to his dream of becoming a national level football player".

"A growing child requires adequate stamina and energy to win every battle in their life. Boost for over 40 years now has been working on this quotient to help kids play a bigger game. Boost is the only HFD which is clinically proven to increase stamina in kids and has been closely associated with sports. With football as a sport gaining momentum in India, Boost Play the Pros in association with BFC provides a great platform to nurture young talent and thus allowing kids to truly play a bigger game," said Vikram Bahl, area marketing lead, GSK Consumer Healthcare.

"Sports is an integral part of a kids life as it not only helps in building their stamina but also teaches them important aspects of life like discipline and hardwork. Events like these not only help in building excitement around upcoming sports like Football but also encourages kids to take them up professionally," said veteran Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid.