Chennai - Sports

Sports

Main article: Sport in Chennai

Cricket is the most popular sport in Chennai. It was introduced as a result of the establishment of the Madras Cricket Club in 1846. The M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk was established in 1916 and is one of the oldest cricket stadia in India. The Chemplast Cricket Ground located inside the IIT Madras campus is another important venue for cricket matches. Prominent cricketers from the city include former Test-captains S. Venkataraghavan and Kris Srikkanth. A cricket fast bowling academy called the MRF Pace Foundation, whose coaches include Bob Simpson and Dennis Lillee, is based in Chennai. Being home to the Indian Premier League cricket team Chennai Super Kings, the city hosted the finals of the IPL's fourth and fifth editions in Chepauk.

Chennai is home to a Premier Hockey League (PHL) team, the Chennai Veerans, and has hosted many hockey tournaments such as the Asia Cup and the Men's Champions Trophy at The Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium. Chennai has produced popular tennis players over the years, including Vijay Amritraj and Ramesh Krishnan, and currently active Somdev Devvarman also grew up primarily in the city and holds a major rank. Since 1997 Chennai has been host to the only ATP World Tour event held in India, the Chennai Open.

Football and athletic competitions are held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, which also houses a multi–purpose indoor complex for competition in volleyball, basketball and table tennis. Water sports are played in the Velachery Aquatic Complex. Chennai was the venue of the South Asian Games in 1995.

Automobile racing in India has been closely connected with Chennai since its beginnings shortly after independence. Motor racing events are held on a special purpose track in Irungattukottai, Sriperumbudur, which has also been the venue for several international competitions. Formula One drivers Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok were born in Chennai.

Horse racing is held at the Guindy Race Course, while rowing competitions are hosted at the Madras Boat Club. The city has two 18–hole golf courses, the Cosmopolitan Club and the Gymkhana Club, both established in the late nineteenth century. The city has a rugby union team called the Chennai Cheetahs.

Viswanathan Anand, the world chess champion, grew up in Chennai. Other sportspersons of repute from Chennai include table tennis players Sharath Kamal and two–time world carrom champion, Maria Irudayam. Chennai will host the 2013 Asian Athletic Championship, and is being considered for hosting the World Chess Championship 2013.

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Famous quotes containing the word sports:

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