The Sports Authority of India (SAI) is a sports organisation that is working with an objective of training the young and talented Indian Athletes. The SAI was established in the year 1984, as a registered society. The Society for National Institute of Physical Education and Sports (SNIPES) was merged with SAI on 1st May, 1987. As a result, the Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports (NSNIS), Patiala and its allied centres at Bangalore, Kolkata and Gandhinagar and the Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education at Thiruvananthapuram came under Sports Authority of India (SAI).

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) mainly strives to promote sports and develop the level of infrastructure to upgrade the skills of Indian sports persons. SAI is working to ensure the effective and optimum utilization of various sports facilities and is concerned with sports promotion and management of various sporting events in India.

SAI has six regional centres located in the major cities like Bengaluru, Gandhinagar, Kolkata, Sonepat, Delhi and Imphal. It also has two sub-centres at Guwahati and Aurangabad. It runs some prominent sports institutes like the Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports, Patiala and the Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education, Thiruvananthapuram. Apart from that, it has a High Altitude Training Centre at Shillaroo, Himachal Pradesh, as well.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) runs a total of around 23 training centers, both residential and non-residential, spread all over the country. Its main endeavour is to widen sports and develop excellence by upgrading the skills of Indian sports persons, by operating various schemes at sub-junior, junior and senior level.

SAI`s primary efforts include widespread talent scouting and training of selected individuals by providing vital inputs like coaching, infrastructure, equipment support, sports kit, competitive exposure etc. With a view to achieve its objectives, SAI has chalked out necessary plans and is implementing various schemes approved within the SAI and schemes of the Department. Some of the main schemes of SAI include the National Sports Talent Contest, the Special Area Games, the Sports Projects Development Area, and the Sports Hostel Scheme etc.

In its scheme called the National Sports Talent Contest (NSTC), the Sports Authority of India (SAI) actually caters to school going children in the age group of 8-14 years. It selects talented children in this scheme through a scientifically designed battery of tests. Once the selection procedure is over, SAI puts the selected individuals in one of its adopted schools. SAI adopts the schools on the basis of sports and residential infrastructure available there, and it considers the school`s reputation in sports performance, as well.

However, SAI has recently revised the selection criterion and decided to directly induct the first three position holders at recognized sub-junior and junior national championships. SAI is training a large number of sports persons at 83 schools and 16 Akharas, under its supervision in India.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) is running the Army Boys Sports Company (ABSC) Scheme in association with the Indian Army authorities. This scheme covers boys in the age-group of 8-14 years, selected from the Regimental Areas and Army Lines on the basis of battery of tests. It puts the selected individuals in ABSC`s run at regimental centres of the Army. The Army authorities provide the individuals with necessary facilities at the regimental centers and SAI provides sports equipment, kit, stipend and coaches. SAI is training several sportspersons at 8 ABSC`s, spread all over India. SAI has designed the Special Area Games (SAG) Scheme exclusively for the sports persons in the age group of 14-21 years. SAI scouts talent for the Special Area Games from rural, tribal, coastal and other areas, under this scheme. After selecting sports persons from those areas, SAI provides them with in-house training, with boarding and lodging facilities at various SAG Centres. SAI is running 16 SAG Centres and 2 associate Centres in the country.

Another scheme of the Sports Authority of India (SAI), called as the SAI Training Centres (STC) Scheme is actually forming the backbone of SAI`s objective of spotting and nurturing of talented sports persons. SAI selects sports persons in the age group of 14-21 years and inducts them in various STCs, under this scheme. The sports persons are given in house training in the STCs. SAI also provide them with boarding and lodging facilities, along with other facilities. A total of 58 SAI Training Centres are running under the supervision of SAI in India.