CHENNAI: Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay will distribute prizes worth Rs 17 crore to winners of the Chief Minister's Trophy competitions on Thursday and felicitate Tamil Nadu's medallists at the fifth Para Asian Games held in Japan, as the State steps up efforts to promote sporting talent and recognise excellence across disciplines.

The ceremony will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here from 3 pm to 5 pm. The competitions, which commenced on October 15, are being conducted across Tamil Nadu in 45 sports, with around 32,000 athletes participating.

Sports Development Minister Aadhav Arjuna announced the Chief Minister's plans to meet and congratulate the para-athletes while felicitating them at the Nehru Indoor Stadium complex on Tuesday. Tamil Nadu won 15 medals — three gold, five silver and seven bronze — in Japan. Of the 13 athletes from the state who participated, nine secured medals.

Thulasimathi Murugesan led the state's medal winners in badminton with a gold and two silver medals, while Naveen Sivakumar clinched a gold and a bronze. Long jumper Solai Raj Dharmaraj won gold in the T64 category.

The other medallists were Nithyasree Sumathy Sivan, Manisha Ramadass, Sivarajan Solaimalai, Jehan Dorab Madan, Kasturi Raja Mani and Baby Sahana Ravi.

"The next dream is the Olympics, and we will stand by you in achieving your goals," Aadhav Arjuna told the athletes, stressing that their achievements demonstrated the importance of mental strength.

He said the government planned to establish a dedicated facility for para-sports as part of the proposed Olympic City, adding that work on the initiative was under way. He also called for greater awareness of para-sports in rural areas and assured athletes of the government's support.