Sports and Recreation
Hockey and cricket are the most popular sports in Tiruchirappalli. Former Indian goalkeepers Charles Cornelius and Leslie Fernandez hail from the city. Construction of astro turf and an indoor stadium are currently in progress at the Anna Stadium complex, the city's principal hockey ground. Apart from the hockey ground, the stadium complex also includes a football ground, an athletic track, a swimming pool, a gymnasium, badminton court and a sports hostel. The Tiruchirappalli District Cricket Association (TDCA) is one of the constituents of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association and regulates school, college and club cricket in the district. First class cricket matches are held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (formerly the Khajamalai Stadium). At the golden jubilee celebrations of the association in 2008–09, plans have been mooted for the setting up of another cricket stadium and an academy in the outskirts of Tiruchirappalli city. The Mannarpuram Cricket Academy is one of the noted cricket coaching academies in Tiruchirappalli. Domestic association football, tennis and volleyball tournaments are held in and around the city. International chess tournaments have also been held in Tiruchirappalli.
There are very few sources of entertainment in the city. The municipal corporation has been blamed for alleged decrepit conditions of its parks. The Trichinpoly Club or Trichy Club was established in Tiruchirappalli Cantonment in 1869. The club was disbanded in 1972 and its assets were taken over by the Madras Club. The P. T. Rajan Park, Chinnaswamy Park, Lourdusamy Park, Raja Park, Parangiri Velusamy Park and Ibrahim Park are some of the important government-run parks in the city. Of these, the Raja Park and Ibrahim Park are frequented by children. There have been plans to set up a zoological park at M. R. Palaiyam on the outskirts of the city. Once completed, the zoo is expected to house about 500 animals belonging to 50 different species. The Anna Science Centre runs a planetarium in Tiruchirappalli.
The Rasika Ranjana Sabha, founded in 1914, is the only popular venue for art and cultural events in the city. According to the Limca Book of Records, the Morris theatre complex in Tiruchirappalli runs the highest number of regular film shows in the world. The Urvasi theatre is another notable cinema in Tiruchirappalli. There are a few shopping malls in the city, the Femina Shopping Mall and the Spencer's Shopping Mall being the most prominent among them.
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Famous quotes containing the words sports and, sports and/or recreation:
“Sports and gallantries, the stage, the arts, the antics of dancers,
The exuberant voices of music,
Have charm for children but lack nobility; it is bitter earnestness
That makes beauty; the mind
Knows, grown adult.”
—Robinson Jeffers (1887–1962)
“Falling in love is the right adventure for those who dislike sports and travel.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“Media mystifications should not obfuscate a simple, perceivable fact; Black teenage girls do not create poverty by having babies. Quite the contrary, they have babies at such a young age precisely because they are poor—because they do not have the opportunity to acquire an education, because meaningful, well-paying jobs and creative forms of recreation are not accessible to them ... because safe, effective forms of contraception are not available to them.”
—Angela Davis (b. 1944)