Trials underway in Sonipat for Asian Yogasana Sport C’ship
Sonipat, April 13: The national trials for the upcoming 2nd Asian Yogasana Sport Championship are underway here at the Sports University of Haryana to determine the athletes who will represent Team India in the continental championship, scheduled to take place from April 25 to 27 at the Indira Gandhi Arena in New Delhi. The trials have drawn an impressive 252 participants from across India, including 123 male and 131 female athletes. Competitors will perform across 12 events, each designed to showcase the power, discipline, balance, and athletic spirit of Yogasana as a competitive sport. The initiative is being led by the Asian Yogasana Sports Federation, a registered body recognised by the Olympic Council of Asia and affiliated with World Yogasana. The selected athletes from these trials will have the honour of representing India at the Asian level, contributing to the global evolution of Yogasana from an ancient discipline to a modern sport. (IANS)
Lukas Martens sets new swimming world record in men’s 400m freestyle
Stockholm, April 13: Olympic champion Lukas Martens of Germany has broken the men’s 400-meter freestyle record at the Swim Open Stockholm. Martens became the first swimmer to break the 3 minute, 40 seconds barrier, finishing Saturday’s race with a time of 3:39.96. That was 0.11 seconds better than the previous record set by fellow German Paul Biedermann in 2009, according to Olympics.com. Biedermann’s mark had been set wearing the drag-reducing “super suits” that were eventually banned in 2010. The 23-year-old Martens won the 400-meter freestyle gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics with a time of 3:41.78. (AP)
Schumacher’s signature on helmet worn by F1 champ Jackie Stewart
Sakhir (Bahrain), April 13: Formula 1 champion Jackie Stewart wore a helmet bearing the signature of all living Formula 1 champions, including Michael Schumacher, as he drove one of his title-winning cars for charity ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday. Seven-time champion Schumacher has not appeared in public since he sustained severe head injuries in a 2013 skiing accident. Few details of his condition have been made public. Stewart earlier told the Daily Mail newspaper that Schumacher had signed the helmet with help from his wife Corinna. “It is wonderful that Michael could sign the helmet in this worthy cause – a disease for which there is no cure,” Stewart was quoted as saying Saturday. “His wife helped him, and it completed the set of every single champion still with us.” The 85-year-old Stewart, a three-time F1 champion, was driving his 1973 championship-winning Tyrrell car to raise awareness for the Race Against Dementia charity, which he founded to research treatments for the disease. Stewart is caring for his wife Helen, who has dementia. “To find a cure for dementia is my biggest wish,” he told the BBC this month. He said that Helen required specialist care and had recently been unable to recognize him. (AP)