Corporate 'Olympics' a hit with staff

BANGALORE: The teams are ready ... the game is kickstarted. It''s five-a-side football match, which is played across only half the area of a regular football field. The ball is not allowed to be kicked above the shoulder, while goals can be scored only from outside a ''penalty area'', much like in hockey.
The Olympics are passe. Welcome to the world of corporate sport.
For a number of corporate honchos, the expression ''Thank God it''s a Friday'' has taken on a whole new meaning.For them, sport is the way to relax, de-stress and rejuvenate. With an ever-increasing number of sport event management companies offering to throw in the competitive spirit, weekends — when matches are usually conducted — are bliss.
For all concerned, it''s serious business. Take SPT Sports. Their five-a-side football tournament is very popular and eagerly awaited in corporate circles.
Then there is Ventures, the event management company. What started out as a 10-team inter-corporate basketball tournament in 1998 has blossomed into a full-fledged, year-round calendar of sporting events involving about 250 organisations.
Says David Ramesh, chief of Ventures: "We dedicate each month to a particular sport. For instance, we conduct throwball for women in January, table tennis in February, and have a month each dedicated to volleyball, basketball and chess."
Tailor-made as these tournaments are, they fit nicely into the hectic schedule of corporates. The rules are modified to enable better participation. Matches are even conducted under lights after office hours.
The Dhanraj Ballal Hockey Academy''s corporate rink hockey tournament is played under lights across a reduced arena, bounded by a low, wooden wall. Rebounds off the wall are allowed, which means that the ball is constantly in play.
Bangalore Sports Club''s CrickEight corporate tournament is played between two teams of only eight players each. Even overs are reduced to eight an innings!
All matches, with perhaps the exception of Ventures'' ''Chessmania'', are of a shorter duration. The Storm Cup basketball tournament is a shortened version of the original, the four quarters lasting only 10 minutes each. These changes, framed with the fitness of corporate executives in mind, enable competition across organisational levels.
Says M. Madhu of Infosys: "It''s very popular among corporates. Managers and even vice-presidents are able to compete. We have inter-department events prior to such tournaments. This acts as trials to select the best possible team."
Corporates pay to participate. But they aren''t complaining. "It''s an excellent tool to foster camaraderie and integrate people," says Ramaprasad, divisional manager, MICO. "My colleagues eagerly look forward to such events."
Gautam Banerjee, operations manager, HSBC, concurs: "It gives us an opportunity to get to know people in our own organisation as well as outside. It''s a tremendous motivational tool."
Amid the fun and frolic, competition reigns high. Relaxation is the key, but winning is important too.