Former captain of India’s men’s national volleyball team, Abhijit Bhattacharya, has been recognized as the global winner of the Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (GEDI) Champions Award 2025 presented by the International Olympic Committee. The recognition highlights his work in developing grassroots sports programs that have transformed the lives of thousands of young people in rural communities in the northeast of the country, where access to sport is often limited and opportunities for girls have historically been scarce.

After finishing his career as an elite player, Bhattacharya decided to focus his energy on community projects in Assam, a region frequently underrepresented within the national sports system. From there, he launched initiatives aimed at bringing volleyball to the most remote villages, promoting equal opportunities for girls and boys, and strengthening the role of sport as a tool for social development, education and youth leadership.

Sport reaches the villages of Assam

After his sporting career, Bhattacharya launched the Assam Volleyball Mission 100, an initiative initially conceived with a simple goal: distributing one hundred volleyballs to rural villages. That idea, launched in 2019, quickly evolved into a broader project that sought to build community clubs and create organized spaces where children could practice sport without having to leave their communities.

From this initiative emerged the Brahmaputra Volleyball League, launched in 2020 and now considered one of the largest grassroots community leagues in the world. It currently brings together more than 12,000 boys and girls organized into around 400 teams. Each village registers both female and male teams in under-12 and under-16 categories, with matches played locally to facilitate participation. For many girls in these rural areas, these competitions represent their first opportunity to join organized sport and even travel beyond their villages.

Gender equality and new opportunities for young female athletes

Promoting gender equality in sport became one of the central pillars of the project. In the league, girls not only participate under equal competitive conditions, but they also receive the same visibility. Each season more than 750 matches are broadcast without distinction between men’s and women’s games, a strategy designed to challenge cultural perceptions and show that sporting talent has no gender.

The impact of the program also extends beyond the court. With the support of UNICEF, the league has trained 90 young people —45 girls and 45 boys— as community ambassadors responsible for promoting education, equality and social responsibility in their communities. At the same time, training programs for coaches and referees seek to ensure safe environments for young female athletes, addressing gender-specific barriers and reducing dropout rates among teenage girls.

Bhattacharya has also placed special emphasis on creating leadership pathways for women in volleyball. Former players from the league are encouraged to become coaches, referees and technical officials, ensuring their continued involvement in the sport beyond their competitive years. One example of this effort was a training course held in Assam with the support of the FIVB Volleyball Foundation, which enabled 45 community coaches —many of them women and from remote areas— to obtain internationally recognized certifications.

“Representing India with this award, and above all the villages of Assam, moves me deeply,” Bhattacharya said upon receiving the recognition. For the former captain, the award symbolizes the collective effort of volunteers, families and young people who have turned volleyball into a tool for social change, capable of opening opportunities and strengthening the confidence of girls who now find in sport a space to build their future.