Mangaluru: The much awaited 19th Federation Cup National Senior Athletics Championship witnessed a grand opening in a colourful ceremony held at the fully refurbished Mangala Stadium here on Thursday, April 30 evening.

The four day event jointly organised by Athletics Federation of India (AFI), Karnataka Amateur Athletics Association (KAAA) and Dakshina Kannada District Athletics Association (DKDAA) witnessed the participation of various state ministers, members of legislative assembly as guests and welcomed nearly 1,000 athletes representing various states of the country.

The event was inaugurated by Higher Education Minister R V Deshpande who was also the chief guest on the occasion. Bollywood star Sunil Shetty, who hails from Mangaluru was also part of the inaugural ceremony.

(Agencies)