5th Khelo India University Games begin with spectacular opening ceremony in Jaipur

The Khelo India University Games (KIUG) Rajasthan 2025 got off to a colourful start at the iconic Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Monday.

This fifth edition of KIUG is being organised under the aegis of the Sports Authority of India, in collaboration with the Rajasthan government, the state sports council, the Association of Indian Universities, and with technical support from national sports federations. Poornima University is the host university.

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The Games, being held from November 24 to December 5 across seven cities in Rajasthan, will see an impressive 4,448 athletes from 222 universities compete in 23 medal events.

Kho-kho will feature as a demonstration sport in line with the Union Sports Ministry’s efforts to promote indigenous disciplines. A total of 296 gold medals will be at stake.

The opening ceremony at the SMS Stadium was a vibrant spectacle. Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya formally declared KIUG 2025 open in the presence of senior ministers, administrators, SAI officials, and thousands of spectators.

In the previous edition of the Khelo India University Games, held across the North-East, Chandigarh University topped the medal tally with 66 medals (28 gold). Lovely Professional University and Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, finished second and third, respectively. Eight Games records were created, all in athletics.

Sports action at the Khelo India University Games Rajasthan 2025 began with individual ranking rounds in Recurve Women and Compound Men archery, along with the pre-quarterfinals in badminton.

In the women’s Recurve category, Srishti Jaiwal of Panjab University topped the standings with 330 points, while Olympian Bhajan Kaur, representing Guru Kashi University, finished fourth with 326 points.

Guru Kashi University’s Rishabh Yadav led the qualification round in the Compound Men event with a total of 358 points, followed by Mihir Nitin Apar of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, who scored 355 points.

In the badminton event being played at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium complex, the University of Mumbai registered a comprehensive 3–0 win over Manipur University, while SRM University blanked Chaudhary Charan Singh University 3–0 in the men’s team championship pre-quarterfinals.