01 February, 2021:

As part of its ongoing mission to empower and support the aspirations of young people in Sri Lanka, the country’s premier poultry producer Crysbro recently held a scholarship awarding ceremony to hand over scholarships to a select group of 20 gifted young athletes selected under the NOCSL-CRYSBRO Next Champ Initiative. The ceremony took place at the NOCSL Sri Lanka Headquarters with the presence of Suresh Subramaniam – President of the Sri Lanka Olympic Committee, Maxwell De Silva – Secretary General of NOCSL and Crysbro Senior Marketing Manager – Amores Sellar as chief guests.

The primary objective of this vital initiative is to identify and empower talented young athletes, and refine their potential to be winners in the international sporting arena. As the first phase of one of Sri Lanka’s most notable Scholarship Programmes, Crysbro together with the support of NOCSL will finance all facets of the entire journey of these young athletes to the international sporting arena – an initiative that coincides with the company’s 50th Anniversary as a leader in the poultry industry.

Additionally, this landmark partnership will see the launch of an online portal, which for the very first time in Sri Lanka will enable members of the public to financially sponsor rural athletes, school sports associations, and sports clubs and chambers. All funds collected through this portal will be fully disbursed to the entities there were contributed, a process carefully overlooked and strictly managed by NOCSL.

“As a home-grown company, our vision for over 50 years has always been to drive lasting positive change in Sri Lanka’s rural communities while bolstering the country’s food security agenda. Therefore, we are extremely honoured to join forces with the National Olympic Committee through a landmark MOU signing last year, an initiative that saw fruition today with the awarding of these life-changing scholarships intended to groom and empower the future torch bearers of Sri Lankan sports. It is our hope that these young athletes will undoubtedly go forth to bring much glory to their motherland with their representation at major international sporting events. While it is certainly rewarding to help these young athletes realize their aspirations of winning a medal at these games, our primary focus will be on supporting the journey, the strategy, and the holistic development of each athlete which involves a combination of physical, mental, and psychological training. However, at the core of this initiative, is a deep desire to elevate the experiences of many resilient Sri Lankan athletes in rural areas with big dreams but with very little financial backing to make them a reality,” stated Crysbro Senior Marketing Manager Amores Sellar.

The scholarships will cover all transportation costs, nutrition, coaching fees, accommodation, logistics such as clothing, sports gear, and medical expenses necessary for the training, grooming and development of each selected athlete for two years with prospect of extension. The programme will also give athletes access to a combination of high-value tools and world-class mentors.

The ‘NOCSL-CRYSBRO Next Champ’ scholarship programme is phase-II of Crysbro’s ‘Next Champ’ scholarship programme, which up to date has groomed and supported the dreams of 120 young athletes from the under-privileged regions of the country. The initiative has also successfully produced a collection of athletes who secured gold and silver medals at the recent South Asian Games in Nepal.

Crysbro Next Champ not only recognises and rewards young sporting talent from all corners of the country, but also budding athletes from multiple sporting disciplines with guidance from experts on aspects such as proper training methods and a suitable diet. The project’s founding vision sought to bolster Crysbro’s already significant social contribution as a key pillar of the country’s rural economy by creating sporting opportunities and promoting the message of staying physically and mentally active.

As the apex body presiding over the national sports agenda, NOCSL is solely responsible for the country’s representation at Commonwealth Games and the country’s development of high performance sport.

Established in 1972 with just 100 chicks and a deep desire to be a market leader in quality and innovation, Crysbro has emerged as Sri Lanka’s first and most sophisticated, fully vertically-integrated poultry producer. Its operations span grandparent and parent farms, hatcheries, broiler farms and feed mills. This thriving ‘Farm-to-Fork’ concept has formed the core of its success. In turn, it has yielded unprecedented benefit for numerous stakeholders including direct and indirect employees, outgrowers, domestic maize farmers and ultimately Sri Lankan consumers. These local links have immeasurably aided domestic production and led to a reduction in reliance on imported poultry products.