The Congress, attended by 24 outgoing executive committee members and 48 representatives from 24 districts, unanimously elected a new 21-member executive committee, headed by Bajracharya for the third time. [break]
The first meeting of the newly elected committee nominated three vice-presidents and ten members to expand the executive committee to 34 members.
Khadga Bahadur Dahal, Sudev Mahat and Piyush Shrestha were re-elected vice-presidents while Ramesh Maharjan also retained his position as the general secretary following the election.
Baburaja Maharjan was elected as assistant general secretary while Dharma Kumar Shrestha and Rajesh Karmacharya became secretary in the new committee.
Bipin Prasad Shrestha was elected the treasurer for the second time in a row and Dinesh Acharya is the vice-treasurer while Hem Bhandari is the joint-secretary.
Other members elected by the Congress are Surya Narayan Shrestha, Rishiram Pradhan, Ganga Dongol, Suraj Dotel, Laxmi Ratna Tuladhar, Deepak Pradhan, Bishwa Gurung, Ram Krishna BC, Bijay Kumar Gurung, Manoj KC.
Usha Basnet, Siddhi Bahadur Shakya and Dharmashila Chapagain were nominated as vice-presidents by Bajracharya.
Meanwhile, those nominated as members are Indra Dongol, Narendra Dongol, Rajan Karmacharya, Dharma Pakchoi, Pramod Nepal, Surendra KC, Debu Thapa, Achyut Lamichhane, Madhav Raj Adhikari and Hari Shrestha.
Addressing the Congress, President Bajracharya highlighted the success of NJA in achieving three bronze medals in Asia and gold and silver medals as well as team championship title in the south Asian region during his tenure.
Bajracharya also shed light on the proposed programs for the next four years for which NJA has allocated a budget of Rs 6.7 million. Bajracharya said NJA, like in the immediate past, will focus on participating in major international competitions including World Championships, Asian Championships, South Asian Championships as well as Olympics in the coming years.
“We won three bronzes ain Asian level but we are not satisfied. We want to win more laurels in the coming years for which we will send the players to compete in various international events.”
Bajracharya said there is a need to provide further training to coaches and players, for which he said, International Judo Federation has pledged its support.
NJA is also planning to build a judo academy in Nepalgunj.
“We have 15 katthas land in Nepalgunj and we are planning to build an academy. We are seeking support of all well wishers in this regard,” said Bajracharya.
Earlier, inaugurating the Congress, National Sports Council (NSC) Member Secretary Yubaraj Lama reiterated his support for judo, and sports in general, and said NSC is in a campaign to adopt decentralization in order to make sports accessible in rural areas.
“We have already initiated the steps for decentralization and are also focused on making sports available at schools and colleges,” said Lama.
Nepal Olympic Committee (NOC) General Secretary Jeewan Ram Shrestha also pledged his support for judo and announced to provide wild card entry for judo players in the upcoming London Olympics. “IOC allocates wild cards for inclusive participation in the Olympics. Judo will also get a chance to participate in Olympics,” he said.
Founding president of NJA Bishnu Gopal Shrestha praised Bajracharya´s leadership and stressed the need for transparency and unity among the new committee members.
“Bajracharya has taken NJA to new heights. Now, transparency is necessary for the new committee but unity is the most important of all. For that, you need positive views, creativity and broadmindedness,” said Shrestha.
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