Rai sports university expands its game plan beyond the field

The Sports University of Haryana at Rai in Sonepat district, the lone sports university in the state, has launched several special courses for young aspirants wanting to carve out careers in sports.

The new courses, which will begin from the 2025-26 academic session, include one-year PG diploma courses in sports psychology, sports nutrition, sports management, strength and conditioning, and sports journalism and mass communication. The university is also set to start a six-week lifeguard certification course.

It has intensified efforts to increase the state’s medal tally in the Olympics.

“There was a time when choosing sports as a career meant one had limited options — often restricted to becoming a physical training instructor (PTI) in schools or hoping to get a government job through the sports quota. But this time has now passed. In today’s India, sports has evolved from being merely a passion or a recreational activity to a thriving professional field, offering a multitude of career paths,” said Sports University of Haryana Vice-Chancellor and former Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar.

The Vice-Chancellor said career prospects in sports were now not just confined to medal-winning performances. A whole ecosystem had emerged around sports, offering careers in sports sciences, management, coaching, physiotherapy, media management and entrepreneurship.

Today, sports had turned into a complete industry in itself, and required qualified professionals at every level, he said, adding that the university had launched courses in line with this.

“Gone are the days when students had to choose between sports and education. At the Sports University of Haryana, both go hand-in-hand,” the Vice-Chancellor said.

New courses launched

• PG diploma (sports psychology): The course enables graduates to become sports psychologists, mental conditioning coaches, consultants for teams/individuals and athlete welfare counsellors
• PG diploma (sports nutrition): Graduates can begin a career as sports nutritionists/dieticians, nutrition advisors or health and wellness consultants
• PG diploma (sports management): The course enables passouts to work as sports event managers, sports marketing executives, team managers, facility or club managers and entrepreneurs in sports ventures
• PG diploma (strength and conditioning): After completing a PG diploma in strength and conditioning, one can start a career as a strength and conditioning coach, fitness consultant for professional teams, corporate wellness coach or a high-performance training expert
• PG diploma (sports journalism and mass communication): The course enables passouts to pursue careers as sports journalists, content creators, social media managers for sports teams and brands, sports commentators and PR managers of sports organisations