Lahaul-Spiti (Himachal Pradesh) [India], September 16 (ANI): Rugby is reaching new heights in Himachal Pradesh—literally—as structured coaching and talent identification for Under-19 players gets underway at Trilokinath in Lahaul-Spiti, situated at more than 9,000 feet above sea level, according to a press release by the Rugby Association Himachal Pradesh (RAHP).
RAHP coach-cum-selector Navpeet Singh, who is also the coach of the Himachal Pradesh State rugby team, reached Government School Trilokinath to conduct a refresher course for schoolchildren and identify promising talent for Under-19 boys' and girls' rugby teams.
The initiative is being conducted alongside the ongoing school sports meet in the Lahaul region, in which around 150 students from 19 schools are participating. The current event is being conducted for boys, while the girls' sports event is scheduled for September 22.
The programme assumes added significance with the Himachal Pradesh Government introducing rugby in the Under-19 category of school games on a trial basis during the current academic session. Under the trial format, district-level teams are being formed through trials, followed by a proposed State-level rugby tournament in October.
The objective is to provide school children across the State, including those from remote and tribal areas, an opportunity to learn rugby, develop their skills and compete through a structured school-sports pathway.
ADPEO Lahaul Vinod Kumar welcomed the initiative and appreciated the efforts to take specialised rugby coaching to the remote areas of the district. He said that the inclusion of rugby in school games would provide students with an opportunity to explore a new sport and develop their sporting potential.
He further said that bringing coaching and talent identification to places such as Trilokinath would help create greater opportunities for students of Lahaul and encourage more schools and children to participate in sporting activities.
The geographical setting of the programme makes it particularly distinctive. Government documentation places Triloknath at approximately 2,760 metres, or more than 9,000 feet, above sea level. While high-altitude rugby training is not unprecedented internationally, taking grassroots school-level rugby coaching and talent identification to such a remote Himalayan location represents an unusual development in the expansion of the sport.
For RAHP, the Trilokinath programme is part of its continuing effort to expand rugby beyond established sporting centres and identify talent from different districts of Himachal Pradesh.
The school-level rugby initiative also opens a pathway towards higher competition. Following district-level trials, a State tournament is proposed in October, with selected players having the opportunity to pursue State representation.
Rugby is also included in the School Games Federation of India (SGFI) programme. The SGFI 2026 calendar lists Under-19 Rugby Boys and Girls in the National School Games, scheduled in Delhi from October 31 to November 5, 2026.
For the young students of Lahaul, the initiative at Government School Trilokinath therefore represents more than an introduction to a new sport. It provides an opportunity to begin a sporting journey from the high Himalayas towards district, State and national-level competition.
After the boys' event and the girls' event scheduled for September 22, the focus will now be on identifying and nurturing rugby talent from schools across Lahaul-Spiti, stated Vikas Sood, President of Rugby Association Himachal Pradesh. (ANI)
RAHP takes U-19 rugby coaching, talent identification to remote Lahaul as Himachal introduces sport in school games on trial basis
