Australian Odias Celebrate ORIOZ Sports Fest 2022

Canberra: Non Resident Odias in Australia celebrated ORIOZ Sports Fest 2022 at Canberra with much splendour and fanfare. Around hundreds of Aussie Odias gathered from all states of Australia at the festival venues to witness and take part in the event showcasing both excellence in sports and fragrance of vibrant Odia culture.

The blending of sports and culture in such a large scale being hosted for the first time by Odias Association in Australia; ORIOZ INC., evoked unprecedented response, unusual interest and exceptional enthusiasm among the participants. The two-day long cultural jamboori and sports extravaganza, conceptualised by Sambit Das from Queensland and ORIOZ President Dr. Nalini Pati, was meant to ensure physical fitness as well as mental wellness of the ORIOZ members in post-Covid time and it has earned immense popularity.

The festival commenced with a fun-filled as well as competitive T12 match between Australia Capital Territory (ACT) and New South Wales (NSW) teams comprising young members of ORIOZ at Gowrie Oval. ACT Team led by Captain Saswat Pati won the match, defeating NSW that was captained by Aavansh Asitav Nayak by one run.

The highlight of the second day of Sports Fest 2022 was badminton tournament conducted at Australian National University Sports Arena. The game that started from league level ended with finals in different categories. The players showcased exemplary professionalism and sportsman spirit during the play. The outcome of the matches were as follows: Men’s Doubles Champion : Sambit Das and Dharmteja  Mansingh; Runners Up: Debashish Choudhury and Anesh Mohapatra; Women Doubles Winners :  Chinmayee Mohanty and Radhika Swain; Runners Up: Madhu Patra and Pragnya Jagadev; Mixed Doubles winners Dharmteja  Mansingh and Akhansha  Mishra; Runners Up : Sambit  Das and Chinmayee Mohanty; Junior Doubles winners: Muskaan Lenka and Subhasree  Patro; Runners up: Deepti Prava Sahu and Alisha Nayak. Orioz’s President Dr. Nalini Pati and Former President Rajsekhar Acharya distributed the trophies, medals and certificates. Renowned sports star and International Shooting Champion Shriyanka Sadangi enthralled the audiences by her inspiring speech.

The colourful cultural programme presented by ORIOZ members at Pearce Community Centre, drew huge appreciation from the viewers. The show was co -ordinated at interstate level with efforts from Mumtaz  Lenka, Smita  Samantaray, Rozaline Rout, Barta Pendyam, Dr Ram Prasad Mohanty, Chinmayee Mohanty and Madhumita Swain. The special attraction of the mega event was the recital of Odia Bhajan ‘Ki Sundara Aha Ki Ananda Maya’ by the kids with the direction of Tarun Agasti. The evening also witnessed several fun frolic and heart touching performances by the members of the community from all age groups from across the states.

Anchors Mumtaz Lenka, Dr Ram Prasad Mohanty, Chinmayee Mohanty, Dharmteja Mansingh, Prisha Mahapatra, Pratyusha Mahunta, Krish Meher and Saswat Pati presented the programmes and conducted the proceedings. The spectators were overwhelmed by the virtual appearance of Ollywood actors Sabyasachi Mishra and Archita Sahu.

Gracing the inaugural ceremony as distinguished guest the Indian High Commissioner in Australia H.E. Manpreet Vohra lauded the vital contributions of Odisha and Odias in promoting Brand India globally. Addressing the gathering, President of ORIOZ Dr Nalini Pati stressed on the dire need of sporting as well as cultural activities to keep the community fit both physically and mentally. Australian Shadow Minister of Multicultural Affairs Peter Cain was also present.

The organising team responsible for the massive success of Sports Fest 2022 included Sambit Das, Mumtaz  Lenka, Manoj Lenka, all the Executive Committee members of Orioz led by President Dr Nalini Pati and the ever active Canberra families of ORIOZ Inc.