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sports
4th NE Zone Shooting Championship begins
(L-R) Chief guest M. Rajendra Singh giving a speech. Championship officials and jurists for the event. (PC-Zang Aier)
Staff Reporter D I M A P U R , AU G 2 9 (NPN): The 4th North East Zone Shooting Championship (NEZSC) begun at Aries Sports Complex, Bamumpukhuri-I, Dimapur, Monday following the opening ceremony with National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) honorary secretary and Manipur Rifle Association senior president M. Rajendra Singh as the chief guest. In his speech, Singh said the first NESZC was held in Mizoram with an aim to promote shooting sport not just in the North Eastern region but also in the whole nation. Recalling the performance of the national shooters in the recently concluded Rio Olympics as ‘very unfortunate’, Singh said although the country could not win any medal in the game, it had
learnt a very good lesson. Basing on the outcome of the Rio Olympics, Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi had taken a drastic step by forming the ‘Task Force’ to help the talented and worthy athletes which includes shooters and sportsperson of various disciplines and groom them for the Tokyo Olympics, Singh said. The Task Force is already functioning under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister, he added. Recently four sportspersons including shooters Jitu Rai were conferred the nation’s highest sporting award ‘Khel Ratna’ and therefore NEZSC is conducted in order to build up shooters for such awards. “The government of India has taken a serious step in order to breed shooters and other sportsperson so that they
can win international medals especially in Olympics” Singh said. He urged the gathered shooters to take full advantage of the internet and other easily accessible tools where they could learn the tips and instructions to compete in the international level and also hire coaches as well. Singh disclosed that NRAI was now supplying arms and ammunitions which were of international standard and could greatly enhance the performance of the shooters. The country is coming up with big schemes to improve the sports infrastructure, arms, ammunitions etc. and therefore it is the duty of the state managements to bring the schemes so that there we can bring up more shooters eligible for the Tokyo Olympics, Singh said. Adding that shooting
was such a sport where coordination of the body and mind was of utmost importance and that some players were not aware of the importance of physical fitness, Singh urged on the respective coaches to pay more attention to the lacking area. He also cited that some players had started practising Yoga in order to improve their performance and better coordination of the body and mind. Singh congratulated the organizing committee for the wonderful job and wish more players would come up from the state of Nagaland. He also urged the players to give their best in their chosen games and wished all the players success. Earlier organizing committee secretary and Nagaland Rifle Association president delivered the welcome address. He also gave a brief in-
troduction on how NRA was formed and the future plans for the association. The opening ceremony was compered by Yanpo Humtsoe. C ha m pionship offi cials and jurists present at the opening ceremony included Manipur Rifle Association secretary-RK Darendrajit, Assam Shooting and Rifle Association general secretary and ISSF judge-Bhaba Kalita, Manipur Rifle Association vice president and ISSF judge-N Indrajit Singh, Sports Authority of India, Imphal, coach and chief classification officer-L Tomba, YAS and ISSF judge-Y Binod Kumar Singh, Global School, Guwahati coach and ISSF judgeYW Leima, NRAI coach and ISSF judge-Rituraj Bhagwati, 50M chief pit officer-Shanti Kumar Longjam, 50M range officer-Rupen Singh, 25M range officer-Peter Z, classification officers-Indra Kumar Lukram and K Tijen Sharma and Shooting Association of Meghalaya secretary-Neil Soothink. According to the official list prepared by the championship officials a total of 162 shooters including 117 males and 45 female from the Northeastern states of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland will be competing in the six-day event. The various events will include 10 metres rifle, 10 metres pistol, 50 metres rifle prone (PS/OS), 50 metres pistol, 50 metres rifle (3 positions), 25 metres standard pistol, 25 metres sports pistol and25 metres centre fire pistol. The events will begin at 8:30 every morning.
India, Windies second T20I abandoned Railways quashes reports on
Lauderhill, Aug 29 (IANS): The second match of the two-match Twenty20 International (T20I) between India and the West Indies here on Sunday was called off due to rain, leading to the latter clinch the cricket series 1-0. After bowling out the West Indies for 143 in 19.4 overs, India were 15/0 in two overs when the dark clouds hovering over Lauderhill opened up, interrupting the play. Even though the rain stopped, wet outfield meant that the match couldn’t be resumed. It resulted in the match being called off and the West Indies bagged the series, thanks to their one-run win in the first match on Saturday at the Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground. In the second match, India’s bowlers showed marked improvement bowling out the West Indies for 143 in 19.4 overs and the team looked very
much in contention to share the honours in the series. India opted to bowl and Jasprit Bumrah (2/26), Mohammed Shami (2/31), Amit Mishra (3/24) and Ravichandran Ashwin (2/11) perfectly exploited the West Indian batsmen’s loopholes as the latter struggled from the very start and even failed to play the full 20 overs. Unlike their previous encounter which saw the West Indies hammering out 245/6 thanks to opening batsmen Evin Lewis (49-ball 100) and Johnson Charles (33-ball 79), India’s bowlers operated with discipline and didn’t alllow the West Indies batsmen to swing their bat freely. With the West Indies reaching 50/1 in five overs, Dhoni brought in Mishra for the sixth over and the leg-spinner struck on his first delivery. Charles’s innings ended when he failed to clear Ajinkya Rah-
ane at the long on boundary. Bumrah then dealt a telling blow by removing veteran Marlon Samuels (5), who edged to Dhoni in the first ball of the 11th over. Later, Ashwin had Kieron Pollard (13) leg before wicket in a carrom ball which forced the batsman to move back at the crease. After these wickets, the West Indies were reeling at 92/5 in 11.5 overs and they were in dire need of a partnership but that didn’t materialise. Andre Fletcher (3) looked for runs as he opened up for room only to see a Bumrah yorker rattling his stumps and Dwayne Bravo (3) too missed the googly from Mishra only for his stumps to be dislodged, reducing his team to 111/7 in 15.2 overs. Shami ended the West Indian innings clean bowling Samuel Badree (1) in the final over as they were bowled out for 143.
mistreatment of hockey players
New Delhi, Aug 29 (IANS): The Indian Railways on Monday dismissed media reports that said that four national women’s hockey players were made to sit on the floor while travelling from Ranchi to Rourkela via Bokaro-Allepey Express train. “The news reports about women’s hockey team, after their return from Rio Olympics being forced to sit on the floor while they were travelling from Ranchi to Rourkela via Bokaro-Allepey Express train is completely false. Also the information that of the TTE asked them to sit on the floor of the bogey of the train is untrue,” the statement said. The Indian Railways also said that the players -- Deep Grace Ekka, Namita Toppo, Sunita Lakra and Lil-
Native Station organises street fitness event
Arm wrestling in progress during the 2nd street fitness event on August 28.
Dimapur, Aug 29 (NPN): The 2nd Street Fitness event, organised by Native Station Nagaland, was held at the heritage circle, Raj Bhavan, Kohima on August 28. Fitness enthusiasts competed in arm wrestling, running race and push-ups as hundreds of participants and spectators came together to witness one of the most exciting street sporting events in
the State. Temjenyanger became the fastest man in Kohima while Siponglemla won the running race female category and received Nike gift vouchers from Tribal Group. In the arm wrestling bout, the man with the strongest arms, Chelo Kapfo became the champion and won gift vouchers from VANS, Gravity while Thepfudilie
Chadi came out as the runners up. While in the female category, Kelhousenuo Khruomo became the champion beating Stella Ngullie (Runners up) in the final round. Two of the fittest men, Temjennukshi from Mezhur Higher and Lekolo Ritse from Kohima Science College hit a tie breaker with 63 full pushups each under one minute in the first round. In the fi-
nal round, Temjennukshi became the champion with 70 push-ups in one minute, while Lekolo was announced as the runner up and won gift vouchers from Skechers. Dr. Khyobeni Mozhui, a neuro scientist specializing in genetics research who is currently working in Memphis University, United States also took part in the fitness competition and won the push-ups female category with 37 pushups under one minute. The event was organized Native Station and supported by PAWF Nagaland (Zumba | Les Mills Body Fitness) with corporate sponsorship from Tribal Group, Gravity, Vans, Nike, Adidas, Skechers, Reebok. Winners: PUSH-UPS Male: Champion – Temjennukshi (Mezhur Higher) Runners-up – Lekolo Ritse (Science College) Female: Dr. Khyobeni Mozhui (Neuro Scientist | Genetics) ARM WRESTLING Male: Champion – Chelo Kapfo Runners-up – Thepfudilie Chadi Female: Champion - Kelhousenuo Khruomo Runners up - Stella Ngullie RUNNING RACE Male: Champion - Temjenyanger Runners-up - Mero Female: Champion - Siponglemla Runners-up – Mhayani Kikon
ima Minz -- who represented India at the Rio Olympics -- reached the station from the Ranchi airport and took the train without any information to the Indian Railways “However, when the players boarded the train with unconfirmed tickets, the TTE took only 20 minutes to make seats available to them,” the statement added. It was found out that the players belonging to Odisha are employees of the Railways and they had preponed their journey to home as they were in a hurry to meet their family members. “The hockey players hold no grudge against the Indian Railways and the same was communicated by them to the Indian Railways authorities,” the statement said.
Nagaland Post, Dimapur tuesday, august 30, 2016
Sindhu, Sakshi and Dipa conferred Khel Ratna
President Pranab Mukherjee in a group photo with the sportspersons and dignitaries at the National Sports and Adventure Award 2016 function at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi on Monday. (PTI) New Delhi, Aug 29 (PTI): It was a celebration of woman power in sports as Olympic stars PV Sindhu, Sakshi Malik and Dipa Karmakar were today conferred India’s highest sporting honour -- the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna -- along with shooter Jitu Rai in a gleaming awards ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan here. For the first time in the history of National Sports Awards, four athletes were chosen for the Khel Ratna honour, owing to the three girls’ superlative show at the Rio Olympics. In 2009, three athletes - boxers Vijender Singh and M C Mary Kom and wrestler Sushil Kumar - had been given this award together. Shuttler Sindhu won a historic silver in the women’s singles, Sakshi won India’s first ever medal (bronze) in women’s wrestling while Dipa grabbed a piece of history for herself with a fourth place finish in artistic gymnastics with her now famous Produnova vault.
Shooter Jitu Rai was always a contender after consistently producing medalwinning performances in the last two years, including gold at the Asian and Commonwealth Games along with a silver at the World Championships. The four Khel Ratnas, who were greeted with a loud round of applause when they walked up to receive their awards from President Pranab Mukherjee, received a medal, certificate and cash prize of Rs. 7.5 lakh each. Also honoured were 15 Arjuna awardees who received statuettes, certificates and award money of Rs.5 lakh each. Long distance runner Lalita Babar, who finished a creditable 10th in the 3000m steeplechase in the Rio Games, boxer Shiva Thapa, only the third Indian to win a World Championships medal last year, and hockey players VR Raghunath and Rani Rampal were among those who received the Arjuna award. Cricketer Ajinkya Rah-
ane, who was also selected for the Arjuna Award, missed out on the ceremony as he is in the United States with the Indian team for a Twenty20 series against the West Indies. Teen Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, the first Indian athlete to become a world champion at any level with a gold medal at the U-20 World Championship, was also among the Arjuna winners this year. Goalkeeper Subrata Paul was the lone footballer in the list of Arjuna awardees, which also included shooter Apurvi Chandela and wrestler Vinesh Phogat. Vinesh received her award while seated on wheelchair as she is recovering from a knee injury sustained in her second-round bout during the Rio Olympic Games. This year’s Dronacharya Award was conferred upon six coaches, the most notable among them being Dipa’s coach Bishweshwar Nandi and India Test team captain Virat Kohli’s mentor Raj Kumar Sharma.
I am ‘fully committed’ to Chelsea: Fabregas London, Aug 29 (Agencies): Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas explicitly denied that head coach Antonio Conte has told him he does not have a future at Stamford Bridge. Fabregas started the midweek EFL Cup win over Bristol Rovers but has only made one Premier League appearance this season, as a substitute at Watford last weekend. He was an unused substitute during Saturday’s 3-0 win over Burnley and media reports on Sunday morning stated that he had been told by Conte that he would be allowed to leave the club. However, Fabregas issued a series of tweets on Sunday night in
Cesc Fabregas
which he made it clear that he will be remaining with the Blues. “Contrary to what has been written, the manager and I have a good relationship and he has NEVER told me that I
can leave,” wrote Fabregas. “He said that he counts on me, as I count on him. I will continue to fight for this club until the very end and when called upon I will always give my best. I am fully committed to Chelsea and my only goal is to help them win football matches.” The 29-year-old has had a glittering playing career, during which he has been capped over 100 times by Spain, helping them to win the World Cup in 2010. Formerly with Arsenal and Barcelona, he signed for Chelsea in the summer of 2014 and played a key role as they won the Premier League title in his first season with the club.
Delhi Dynamos retain Frenchman Malouda for ISL N e w D e l h i , Aug 2 9 (IANS): Delhi Dynamos FC on Tuesday retained the services of former French international Florent Malouda for the upcoming third edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) football tournament. Malouda will be their marquee player for the tournament. He was on loan at the Wadi Degla FC in the Egyptian Premier League club and will return for his second stint with Dynamos, according to a release. Malouda featured in 16 games last year and provided eight assists for goals on their way to the semi-finals. DDFC president Prashant said, “Florent is a team player and he was an integral part of us reaching all the way till the semi-finals last season. His leadership both off and on the pitch is commendable.” Malouda sounded equally enthusiastic about his fresh venture. “I am very excited to be back in India. It was a wonderful experience for me to play in the league last year and enjoyed it a lot. It was for the first time that I played outside Europe and to be honest I enjoyed it a lot,” Malouda said in the release. “We had a very good squad last season and it was sad that we had to bow out of the tournament in the semis. It’s a different squad this year, I hope that we can build on what we achieved last season and together aim to lift the trophy this season.” the 36-year-old winger added.
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