Dehradun, December 22
The mention of Bahadurpur may not ring a bell to most Doonites today, but this town, in the centre of the Doon valley, might have been abuzz with activity during the reign of Shah Jahan in 1655.

Providing the missing links in the forgotten chapters of Dehradun’s history is the ancient, but lost town of Bahadurpur that was once the capital of Doon valley and had gained prominence during Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s times.

Though nothing survives of the town, eminent historian WE Begley, after undertaking intensive research on the “Padshahnama”, the official court history of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, wants historians and archaeologists to re-look and conduct studies about Bahadurpur.

“As of now, some portions of the town have been over taken by villages and a cantonment, but still, Doon’s Mughal connection needs to be explored,” said Begley to The Tribune.

Dehradun, December 22
Bereft of cushioning, several events in the speed skating category could not take place today exposing once again the non-professional attitude of the organisers of the Open Ice-Skating Championship.

The events scheduled for boys and girls in the senior category in the long and short track and in the junior category for boys in the long and short track are now slated for tomorrow.

The organisers had just about managed to put up thin cushion covers for the events that were found to be inadequate by the players and representatives who had come from different associations.

In fact, they were ready to give it a go by, but better sense prevailed after senior office-bearers of Ice Hockey Association of India also pointed towards the need to have standardised cushions.

“The padding was inadequate from day one, but the organisers wanted to carry on. It was only after some players and experts from outside Uttarakhand put their foot down that they woke up to the reality. Then, they decided to hold the events in some categories tomorrow,” said Subodh Patil from Maharashtra.

Now the organisers are expected to pad the rink at night so that the venue is ready by tomorrow. These pads provide a protective cover to the players who race at a very high speed.

Similarly, the equipment provided by the organisers too was inadequate for long-track races. Most of the participants were found wearing unsuitable skates. “I wonder what the technical committee has been doing all this while. Either they do not have enough exposure or do not care about the safety of the players,” said the manager of the Maharashtra team.

Charges of nepotism and favouritism too were levelled against the organisers after some parents objected to the nomination of persons as judges whose wards were also participating in different events.

Sources claimed that a dissenting note by one of the judges yesterday and the demand by parents about the eligibility criteria pertaining to the age of participants too set off discordant note.

“I had raised the issue about eligibility criteria as I found some of the candidates to be over-age,” said Prakash Saavarkar, Team Manager, Maharashtra.

PC Thapliyal, Media In charge, said that this was a learning experience for the state.

Dehradun, December 22
Possessing nimble legs and lighting speed, Ladakhi girl skaters today rested their oars not before bagging all the top four positions in the 300m junior speed skating event.

A clean sweep by Shabina Kausar, Diskit C Angmo, Rigzin and Padma gave enough indication about the immense talent that the Jammu and Kashmir team possesses.

“We came to Dehradun with full preparation. We have been participating in events round the year,” said Shabina Kausar who bagged the first prize.

All the four girls train together and even compete together, but there is no rancour, only healthy competition. “We begin training our girls quite young. The closeness between them is natural as they belong to the same region, but all that is left behind when they are in the rink,” said Abdul Rashid, Vice-President of the Ladakh Winter Sports Club.

Though the girls are used to a natural rink on which they practice back home in Ladakh, practice allows them to adjust to the artificial rink. “The natural rink is very hard as compared to the artificial rink, but few hours of practice helps us adjust to the artificial surface,” said Diskit C Angmo.

The quartet agrees that the country could hope for an Olympic medal from them in the future.

Similarly, Sumit Sanjay Tapkir, winner of 200m in the sub-junior category and a student of Bhartiya Vidyapeeth, Pune, too is aiming for national honours. “My brother is a roller skater. This is how I began and now, I am being coached by Subodh Patil, a national speed champion,” said Sumit.

Prakhar of Meerut, who came second in the same race, is from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, and a product of the Aneesh Bharti Academy.

Dehradun, December 22
In the speed-skating races held in different categories, players from Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Maharashtra dominated the events.

In the sub-junior category, all the top three positions were won by girls from Uttarakhand, while in other events, girls from Jammu and Kashmir triumphed home.

Predicting a bright future for junior skaters, Arvind Gupta, one of the organisers of the championship, said, “There is immense talent at the junior level, but we need to do more to take it up to the senior level.”

Results of speed skating: Girls (sub-junior) short track (200m): 1st Position - Yati Gupta - Uttarakhand; 2nd Position - Swati Bhambi - Uttarakhand; 3rd Position - Prayakshi Thapi - Uttarakhand.

Boys (sub-junior) short track (200m): 1st Position - Sumit Tapkir - Maharashtra; 2nd Position - Prakhar - Uttar Pradesh; 3rd Position - Vinay Sarvarkar - Maharashtra.

Girls (junior) short track (300m): 1st Position - Shabina - Jammu and Kashmir; 2nd Position - Diskit C Angmo - Jammu and Kashmir; 3rd Position - Regzin Yungdol - Jammu and Kashmir.

Girls (junior) long track 500 m: 1st Position - Padma Chorol - Jammu and Kashmir; 2nd Position - Diskit C Angmo - Jammu and Kashmir; 3rd Position - Shabina Kamigar - Jammu and Kashmir.

Girls (sub-junior): 400 m: 1st Position - Yati Gupta - Uttarakhand; 2nd Position - Sanchi Pandita - Uttarakhand; 3rd Position - Swati Bhambi - Uttarakhand.

Boys (sub-junior): long track: 1st Position - Sumit Tapkar - Maharashtra; 2nd Position - Sneshish Tiwari - Uttarakhand; 3rd Position - Vinay Savarkar - Maharashtra.

Dehradun, December 22
Tata Docomo Cricket Club defeated Helax XI Cricket Club by three wickets in the Beehive Challenger T20 Cricket Tournament played at the Matawala Bagh grounds here today.

Helax XI won the toss and elected to bat first. The team scored 141 runs with captain Puneet Sharma scoring the highest 48 runs. There were 47 extras in their inning. Imraan took two wickets for 26 runs in his allotted four overs for the Tata Docomo team

In reply, Tata Docomo started well scoring 65 runs till the fall the first wicket. Openers Gaurav Saini and Ritish scored 28 and 33 runs respectively. Later, Deepak scored an unbeaten 25 to steer his team to victory. The Tata Docomo team reached the target losing seven wickets. Sharad of Helax XI took four wickets for 40 runs.

Dehradun , December 22
Bijnore Cricket Club trounced Tanush Cricket Academy, Dehradun, by six wickets in the third Uttarakhand Shaheed Girish Bhadri Memorial Cricket Tournament organised by Ajabpur Youngsters' Cricket Club at Rangers' College ground here today.

Tanush Cricket Academy won the toss and elected to bat first. They were all out for 153 runs in 32.4 overs. Pawan Sundriyal was the highest scorer with 53 not out with the help of four fours and four sixes. Raja took three wickets for 27 runs.

In reply, Bijnore Cricket club scored the required runs in 30.5 overs at a loss of four wickets. Saurab and Wasi with their unbeaten knocks of 30 and 36 runs, respectively, steered their team to victory. Raja of Bijnore Club who took three wickets for 27 runs was declared the Man of the Match.

Ravinder Bhola Cricket Club, Delhi, will meet Cricket Club of Mohali in a match on Thursday.