Media baron Sivanthi Adithan dead

Chennai, April 19 (IANS) Tamil media baron, educationist and sports administrator Sivanthi Adithan died here Friday night after prolonged illness. He was 76.

Adityan was admitted to a private hospital here a month back suffering a stroke. He is survived by his wife Malathi Adithan, son Balasubramaniam Adithan and a daughter.

A Padmashree awardee, Adithan headed the media group that runs the one of largest circulating Tamil dailies "Daily Thanthi", evening daily "Malai Malar', television channel Thanthi TV. The group also has interests in other industries and educational institutions.

Adithan, a keen sports enthusiast, was a volleyball player. Later he served as the president of Volleyball Federation of India and was also headed the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).

In 1996, Adithan received the Olympic Order of Merit from the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

His funeral will be held here Saturday.

MDMK general secretary Vaiko in a statement said he was not able to believe his ears when he heard about Adithan's demise. He termed Adithan a "great person" in the Indian newspaper field.