Kathmandu, Nepal, April 5, 2022: The Nepal Olympic Committee will celebrate the International Day of Sports for Development and Peace with various programmes, including a walkathon, in Lumbini - the birthplace of Buddha – on Wednesday, April 6.
“As we are talking of development and peace, the birthplace of Gautama Buddha is the venue to celebrate the day,” said Nepal NOC President Hon. Jeevan Ram Shrestha at a press conference on Sunday, April 3.
“We have plans to make it a grand event inviting International Olympic Committee officials and representatives of all 207 National Olympic Committees in the IOC to Lumbini in the years to come, apart from organising a Peace Walkathon,” noted NOC President Shrestha.
“If we can do that, it will help in promoting Lumbini on the international arena and also support the tourism sector,” added Shrestha, who is also a Member of Parliament.
On Wednesday, Lumbini Province Chief Minister Kul Bahadur will inaugurate the programme at Shantideep, while NOC President Shrestha, Minister Basuddin Khan and Lumbini Development Trust vice chairman Venerable Metteyya Sakyaputta will switch on the lights at the venue after the completion of the Peace Walkathon.
Lumbini is a Buddhist pilgrimage site in Lumbini Province in Nepal. It is the place where, according to Buddhist tradition, Siddhartha Gautama, the Lord Buddha, was born in 623 B.C.