After two years of COVID-related cancellations, Griffith's Sikh Games will finally make its long awaited return.
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The 24th Shaheedi Tournament will take place at Ted Scobie oval during the June long weekend and is expected to attract thousands of spectators from Australia, New Zealand, and even India.
The Shaheedi Tournament, which is organised by Griffith's Gurdwara Singh Sabha Society, will see Sikh athletes take part in different sports and competitions such as soccer, volleyball and kabaddi, to honour Sikh martyrs who gave their lives for their religion.
After cancellations in both 2020 and 2021 due to government COVID-19 restrictions on large public gatherings, Griffith Singh Sabha Society general secretary, Harpreet Singh, said he was looking forward to the games' return.
"We're really excited for this, especially after two years. We're expecting a lot of people to come from all over the world," Mr Singh said.
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He also said the tournament had become so popular in recent years that it was no longer just members of the Sikh community attending, but other people from the wider community too.
"This is not just 'our game' or 'our tournament' now," he said. "Italians, Aussies and all sorts of people are coming and watching this huge event at the Ted Scobie oval."
"In the coming years I don't think it's going to be just for the Indians or Sikhs, it's going to be pretty big."
Given the tournament's growing popularity and attendance numbers, Mr Singh said this year organisers would be introducing more games and activities.
"Previous years we only had soccer and Kabbadi, but this year we're trying to introduce more games like athletics and netball for the girls," he said.
"Volleyball has always been there, but this year we're expecting 30 to 35 teams just for volleyball.
"We're expecting more games coming up next year too, like hockey, athletics, tennis, badminton and netball."
Despite the Shaheedi Tournament being a traditionally Sikh event, Mr Singh reiterated that everyone was welcome over the June long weekend.
"We want to send a message to everyone to come and join us and to have a look and see what it's like," he said.
"There's free food and free snacks. There's no entry fee. You don't have to pay anything to watch it. It's open and we welcome everyone there."
It's estimated $3 million was injected into the local community last time the Sikh Games took place in 2019.
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