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| SPORTS TRIBUNE |
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Loads of hopes
All in the family
UP and coming
In
the news |
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Loads of hopes As dawn breaks, the diminutive Kunjarani Devi starts her day by lifting 120 kg over her head at the NIS in Patiala, where the women’s weightlifting camp is being held in preparation for the Commonwealth Games. Kunjarani, the winner of many a medal on the international circuit, lifts the load, drops it, then repeats the process so many times that her hands develop blisters.
Pain is what the ace Indian lifter has to endure day after day. Like Kunjarani, her colleagues have been taking part in this tough training for the past two months. Their goal is the same — winning a medal, preferably a gold, at the Melbourne games. Winning requires an almost impossible confluence of technique, tactics and self-belief. The litmus test for the seven-member women’s squad will begin Down Under on March 16 when the competition commences. In the previous edition of the games held at Manchester in 2002, the Indian women lifters returned with over 20 medals of different hues. Melbourne will be different from Manchester as the medal tally is sure to whittle down owing to the new rules framed by the international body. Earlier, three medals were given for clean and jerk, snatch and the grand total. Now only one will be given for the highest grand total. That’s why the chief coach of the women’s squad, Hansa Sharma, pegs India’s medal tally in Melbourne at six. Hansa opines that Kunjarani, who is on the wrong side of 40 and probably will be competing in her last big international meet, may lead the challenge for the country as a weightlifting powerhouse, Nigeria, is still serving a doping violation ban. She reckons that Kunjarani is likely to win a gold in the 48 kg class despite the fact that a Canadian girl is lifting the same weight as Kunjarani. Hansa thinks that Kunjarani should make the most of her varied experience and expertise to beat the Canadian. Moreover, her low body weight will also help. Hansa points out that the other “golden” prospects are Monica Devi (69 kg), Geeta Devi and Simple Kaur (both plus 75 kg). Those bracketed in the silver and bronze medal categories are Promila Velu (63 kg) and Renu Bala (58 kg). The chief coach can draw upon her experience in the Commonwealth championship held in Melbourne in October last year. The Indians won seven medals, including five gold, which came due to the efforts of Geeta Devi, P. Shailaja, Nansita Devi, Promila Velu and Prasimita Mangaraj. However, she hastens to add that many lifters who deliberately absented themselves from the Commonwealth championships will be present at the Commonwealth Games. Still, last year’s championship has given valuable experience to Indian lifters. Hansa says that the Indians will face stiff competition from countries like Wales, Papua New Guinea, Canada, Australia, Nauru and Seychelles. But then her squad is banking upon the experience of lifters like Kunjarani, Simple Kaur, Geeta Devi and Monica Devi to bag at least six medals. |
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All in the family
What started as a routine activity to keep their younger daughter busy has now turned into a passion for the Kundu family. After having practised choi kwang do for the past four years, all four members of the family are now black-belt holders in this martial art.
Members of the Kundu family practise choi kwang do in Panchkula. V.S. Kundu, a senior IAS officer of the Haryana cadre, who is serving as Director, Sports, had attained his black belt in 2004. His wife, Sucheta, and daughters Varnikaa, 18, and Satvika,12, were given the black belt after a test held two months ago. Their coach, Bikram Singh Thapa, says that they are the first family in the region whose all members have been awarded a black belt. Kundu said he thought of enrolling his daughter Satvika for the classes when he came to know that her friend was learning the sport. “We were all excited to see Satvika practise, and thus joined the training classes. It normally takes three years to get the black belt, and I was awarded one in three years and three months. The three months’ delay is because the belt test is held every four months, and not when you complete the training,”
he says. His wife Sucheta, who has done a lot of research on the sport, said she took an instant liking for choi kwang do because unlike other martial arts, where one’s elbows and other joints got locked, movements in this case
were more natural and comfortable. “No wonder people of all age groups can learn and practise it,” she says, explaining how a 90-year-old woman in the USA had got a black belt in the sport recently. Now, after having mastered choi kwang do, she is teaching it to destitute children at Bal Niketan, Sector 2, and Bal Sadan, Sector 12-A, in Panchkula. Having achieved a rare feat in this martial art, the family is now working to get the second degree in black belt. “The highest degree that anyone in India has achieved is a fourth degree in black belt. We hope to beat this record, and become master instructors by doing five degrees of black belt,”
says Varnikaa. Her sister Satvika said she felt more secure and confident after having learnt the martial art. “Girls must be ready to deal with all kinds of people as they move out of their houses, sometimes late in the evenings. After having learnt choi kwang do, I feel that I can go out alone without fear from hooligans,” she avers. V.S. Kundu, however, laments that the sport has not yet gained much popularity in the region. “Though the martial art is popular in the metros, it has yet to pick up in the region. In Chandigarh, health freaks going to gymnasiums have now realised the benefits of kickboxing. Now, I along with Thapa, have tied up with Ozone, Chandigarh, for teaching choi kwang do and making it popular,”
he states. |
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UP and coming
Uttar
Pradesh never had it so good in cricket. Once considered minnows, the state is
now in the big league. The young brigade from UP made history twice last month
— first, when they annexed their maiden Ranji title, and second, when a record
four players made it to the Indian Test squad. A few years ago, this twin feat
would have seemed a pipe dream for cricket lovers of the state.
Mohammad Kaif and new bowling hero R.P. Singh were already in the Test side. Now they have been joined by Suresh Raina and Piyush Chawla. With
these selections, Uttar Pradesh has challenged the dominance of Maharashtra,
Karnataka and Delhi in the Indian team. However, this hasn’t happened
overnight. The state has produced several talented during the past few years.
This trend is corroborated by the fact that two youngsters from the state,
Ravikant Shukla and Piyush Chawla, captain and vice-captain of the under-19
squad, respectively, took the team to the final in the recent Under-19 World Cup
in Sri Lanka. The BCCI has been putting emphasis on young talent and more and more under-19 players have ben drafted into the senior side in recent years, such as Kaif, Raina, Yuvraj Singh and Irfan Pathan. The latest product from the under-19 nursery is 17-year-old leggie Chawla. Greg Chappell spotted him during the last Challenger Series when the diminutive spinner claimed the scalps of Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh and VVS Laxman. Uttar
Pradesh captain Kaif, who led the team to victory against Bengal in the Ranji
final, is also a role model for the boys of small towns. The spread of cricket
is visible in Team India as well as in Kaif’s state. Unlike before, when Indian team had players from the four metros, besides Bangalore and Hyderabad, now we have players from the hinterland. The Indian squad, which was dominated by Mumbai players earlier, has just Sachin Tendulkar from this powerhouse of cricket. Now we have Mahendra Singh Dhoni from Jharkhand, S. Sreesanth from Kerala and of course the quartet from UP. In Uttar Pradesh, players from cities like Kanpur, Allahabad and Lucknow traditionally made it to the state team. But now quality players are emerging from small towns like Rae Bareilly, Muradnagar and Aligarh. R.P. Singh, who first hit the headlines in the Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh in 2004 and rattled Pakistani batsmen recently with his deadly in-cutters, hails from Rae Bareilly. Shukla, the under-19 team captain, is also from this town. Chawla, who was also part of the Ranji winning UP side, hails from Aligarh, while Raina is from Muradnagar. This
emergence of cricketing talent in small towns shows that the game, which was
once the domain of the urban middle class, has percolated through the cricketing
backwaters. Dhonis and Kaif's have become icons for youngsters in villages and
small towns. This augurs well for Indian cricket. |
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Striker Deepak Thakur was sorely missed by India in the recent hockey series against Pakistan. In his absence, the new-look forward line comprising Didar Singh, Sardara Singh, Tejbir Singh, Tushar Khandekar and Arjun Halappa failed to click,
muffing a number of scoring opportunities.
With Deepak’s recall for the upcoming Common-wealth Games to be held in Melbourne, India can hope for an improved performance. His inclusion is a timely decision taken by the IHF as the Indian Oil
striker was omitted from the 20-member squad for the Pakistan series despite his good show in several domestic tournaments, including the Premier Hockey League. The day he was named in the Melbourne-bound squad, Deepak showed that he was in good form by slamming three goals for Indian Oil against Air India in a super league match of the Maharaja Ranjit Singh Hockey Tournament in New Delhi.
— Agencies |
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Team India on a roll Congratulations to Rahul Dravid and his team for beating Pakistan 4-1 in the ODI series. It could have been a clean sweep but for some lapses which led to a loss in the first ODI. However, Team India was quick to learn the lessons and its performance in the next four matches was superb. Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni with their powerful batting, and Irfan Pathan and R.P. Singh with their outstanding bowling outshone the others. Yuvraj richly deserved the man of the series award. India is likely to fare better against England in the home series and later against the West Indies in an away series. The team’s prospects for the 2007 World Cup have surely brightened. — D.K. Aggarwala, Hoshiarpur II The fourth ODI between India and Pakistan turned out to be the decider as India won the encounter with consummate ease to clinch the series authoritatively. They annihilated their arch-rivals with a five-wicket victory, security an unassailable 3-1 lead. Indian owed their series victory to their young bowlers who bundled out Pakistan, who batted first, for a meagre 161. Irfan Pathan and R.P. Singh shared the spoils, claiming three and four wickets, respectively. When it was their turn to bat, India overhauled the paltry target in 32.3 overs for the loss of five wickets to romp home in style. Not being complacent, India won the last ODI emphatically, too, by eight wickets. Yuvraj, despite straining a hamstring, hit a scintillating unbeaten ton, while wicket keeper Dhoni, as is his wont, plundered an unbeaten 77 to send Pakistan to their doom. However, Pakistan got some consolation that their
under-19 team beat India in the final of the U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka on the day of the last ODI in Karachi. Indian colts shot out their opponents for 109 but were themselves bowled out for 71. —
Tarsem S. Bumrah, Batala |
