Chirag Sen loses in qualifiers; Jolly-Gayatri pair in pre-quarters
Hong Kong, Sep 10: India’s Chirag Sen and Manav Choudhary bowed out in the quarterfinals of the men’s singles qualifications while the duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand progressed to the pre-quarterfinals of the women’s doubles in the Hong Kong badminton tournament here on Tuesday. The World Tour Super 500 event, third in the order of tournaments in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) calendar, will be held till Sunday. Jolly and Gayatri beat Ukraine’s Polina Buhrova and Yevheniia Kantemyr 21-14, 21-13 in a round of 32 match to begin their campaign on a positive note. Panda sisters Rutaparna and Swetaparna, however, suffered a 11-21, 8-21 loss to Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Pei Shan and Hung En-Tzu in their women’s double round of 32 match. (PTI)
K’taka’s Hashika breaks 13-yr old record in 400m freestyle swimming
Mangaluru, Sep 10: Karnataka’s Hashika Ramachandra broke a 13-year-old national record in the 400m women’s freestyle event at the 77th Senior National Aquatic Championships here on Tuesday. Hashika broke the national record, held previously by Richa Mishra (4:25.76) from Jharkhand, by clocking 4:24.70 minutes. The Men’s 400m saw Karnataka’s Aneesh S Gowda claim the top spot with a time of 3:56.59 minutes. Dhanush Suresh, from Tamil Nadu, won gold in the men’s 200m breaststroke with a timing of 2:18.85 minutes. (PTI)
Record entries for first ever National Ranking TT in Kangra
Kangra (Himachal Pradesh), Sep 10: The season opener of the UTT National Ranking Championships this year will begin in Kangra on Wednesday, a city renowned for its natural beauty and historical significance. Kangra will be hosting its first-ever National Ranking event, organised by the Himachal Pradesh Table Tennis Association. The tournament has drawn an impressive 2,300 entries across 12 categories, including boys, girls, senior men, and women, from 44 entities representing 32 states and 12 institutions. The event is not just about the immediate competition but also carries a deeper significance, as it serves as a platform for young and senior players alike to showcase their talent and prepare for future national and international tournaments. The championships will commence with the Youth Under-11 and Under-13 events for boys and girls. On the other end of the spectrum, experienced players will seize this opportunity to reaffirm their positions in the domestic circuit and gear up for upcoming international competitions. (PTI)
Sable to join Chopra in Diamond League finale in Brussels
New Delhi, Sep 10: National record holder 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable will run in his maiden Diamond League Final in Brussels, joining star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra in the season-ending event, as he is listed among 12 participants for the winner-takes-all race on Friday. Sable finished 14th in the overall Diamond League standings with three points he garnered from two meetings. But four athletes ranked higher than him – Lamecha Girma (injured) of Ethiopia, Geordie Beamish of New Zealand, Ryuji Mura of Japan and Hillary Bor of the USA – are not taking part in the final. The season finale will be a two-day affair on September 13 and 14. The men’s 3000m steeplechase is scheduled for September 13 while the men’s javelin throw event will he held the next day. Five meetings out of the 14 in the DL series across the world this season had men’s 3000m steeplechase event. The 29-year-old Sable had finished sixth with a national record time of 8:09.91 – bettering his own earlier mark – in the Paris leg of the Diamond League on July 7. He was 14th at the Silesia leg with a time of 8:29.96 on August 25. He had finished a disappointing 11th at the Paris Games after becoming the first Indian to enter Olympics final in men’s 3000m steeplechase. Two-time Olympic medal winner Chopra qualified for the DL final after finishing fourth in the overall standings. (PTI)