Bengaluru: Indian tennis legend Leander Paes, who played his last ATP event on home soil at the Bengaluru Open, was felicitated by former Olympians and sports Internationals at the KSLTA Stadium, here on Sunday.
Leander Paes, who is on his swan song, and his Australian partner Ebden had lost to Indian pair of Purav Raja and Ramkumar Ramanathan in the men’s doubles final on Saturday. There were athletes who began their career at the same time as Paes but had hung their boots while Paes who has had a distinguished career spanning 30 years and decorated with many awards, is playing in his last year.
On Sunday, just before the singles finals, the 46-year-old Indian was given a rousing farewell with stars from various sports including former hockey players Jude Felix, V R Raghunath, Arjun Halappa, former track and field athlete Ashwini Nachappa and Davis Cupper Prahlad Srinath joining thousands of people who had gathered here.
All the athletes regaled the audience with their experiences with Paes, who was overcome with emotion.
“All of you taught me how the passion for sport, dedication and hard work helps us to achieve success,” said Leander Paes while requesting the audience to give a standing ovation to the former athletes. (Agencies)
