Garmin-Sharp deliver as Martin wins Tour stage

 

 Garmin-Sharp promised to cause chaos in the Tour de France and they duly delivered on Sunday as they showed that Team Sky were not the only team with a plan. American Tom Danielson, Briton David Millar, Canadian Ryder Hesjedal and Irishman Dan Martin, who went on to win the ninth stage, attacked in quick succession before the day's first climb, blowing the stage open and isolating overall leader Chris Froome from his Sky team mates.
"We were attacking without thinking about it, it was crazy," Martin told a news conference after the 168.5-km from St Girons. "We wanted to make the race exciting. We enjoy bike riding, we wanted to put on a show for people at home." Garmin-Sharp's laid-back attitude is in sharp contrast with Team Sky's clinical approach but on Sunday they had a strategy.
"This stage was a bit of an objective for us since the start in Corsica and even after having lost Christian Vande Velde," Martin said, referring to the crash on stage seven that ruled his team mate out of the Tour. "It was a stage that suited us. With the team we have we can afford to be aggressive."

American Tom Danielson, Briton David Millar, Canadian Ryder Hesjedal and Irishman Dan Martin, who went on to win th

Martin is a decent climber, just like Danielson and Hesjedal, and they stuck to manager Jonathan Vaughters' plan to "cause chaos" in the race. "Craziest thing about today? We planned it," said Millar. "I put a lot of pressure on today. It was the day I pointed to from a week ago as the day we could define our Tour de France," added Vaughters.
"Amazing how they responded." Martin was the only Garmin-Sharp rider who managed to stay in the lead group, meaning it was his task to capitalise on the strong work of his team. "I had enough legs to attack in the last climb so when I saw there was a bit of hesitation in the group I told myself there was no reason why I shouldn't attack," said Martin, who speaks fluent French having spent his amateur years with local club VC La Pomme in Marseille.
Martin, the first Irishman to win a Tour stage since his uncle Stephen Roche in 1992, is now eighth overall, 2 minutes 28 seconds behind Froome, and can target a podium finish in Paris. "The GC (general classification) is something that happens by being consistent," he said. "Maybe I'm going to start thinking about it."

Shot-putter Inderjeet grabs silver at World University Games

 

 New Delhi: Shot-putter Inderjeet Singh became the first Indian to win a medal in the World University Games (Universiade) as he claimed a silver with a personal best of 19.70m in Kazan, Russia.
Inderjeet achieved his best in his fifth and penultimate throw after a modest opening effort of 18.29m.
Russia's Alexander Lesnoi (20.30m) won the gold while compatriot Valeriy Kokoev (19.65m) took the bronze in the flagship event among the universities in the world.

Shot-putter Inderjeet Singh became the first Indian to win a medal in the World University Games.

25-year-old Inderjeet had taken part in the just-concluded Asian Athletics Championships in Pune where he finished fourth with a best throw of 19.31m on July 3.

Three Indians in Asian Boxing Championships finals

 

 New Delhi: The young Indian trio of L Devendro Singh (49kg), Shiva Thapa (56kg) and Mandeep Jangra (69kg) continued their fine form to enter the finals of the Asian Boxing Championships in Amman, Jordan.
The three young guns are now assured of at least a silver medal finish from the tournament. The nimble-footed Devendro was at his menacing best against LV Bin from China. The 21-year-old dominated the bout from the very beginning and won comfortably. The World Championship quarter-finalist will now look better the colour of his first medal when he takes on Temertas Zhussupov of Kazakhstan.
Shiva, making his second international appearance since the 2012 London Olympics, was up against Malbekov Omurbek from Kyrgyzstan in his semi-final bout.

L Devendro Singh, Shiva Thapa and Mandeep Jangra continued their fine form to enter the finals of the Asian Boxing Championships in Amman, Jordan.

He started slowly but soon nosed ahead with the help of some sharp jabs and swift footwork. In the second and the third round Malbekov fell to the precise counter-attacks of Shiva and lost his rhythm.
The Indian went on to make a place in the title round with a victory with a unanimous decision. The 19-year-old will next take on another 19-year-old Obada Alkabeh from the home team on Monday.
Jangra too continued his purple patch. The 20-year-old was involved in tough scuffle for a place in the finals against Mongolia's Asian Games bronze-medallist Jargal Otgonjargal.
The Mongolian boxer started strongly with some punishing body blows. But Jangra's solid defence and counter-attacking paid off and he kept accumulating crucial points.
After nine minutes of intense boxing, the Indian emerged victorious on a unanimous decision from the judges. The national champion will now lock horns with 2010 Asian Games gold-medallist Daniyar Yeleussinov of Kazakhstan.
But there was disappointment for Commonwealth Games gold medallist Manoj Kumar (64kg) in the semi-finals of the light welterweight division.
Pitted against Olympic bronze-medallist Uranchimegiin Monkh-Erdene, Kumar gave his opponent a run for his money but came up short against the Mongolian in what was a fight to the finish. He will have to be content with a bronze medal performance from the tournament.
National Coach GS Sandhu was extremely pleased with the performance of all the four boxers in the semi-finals.
"All the three boys who have made it to the finals have shown great skill throughout the tournament. They have faced some tough opponents and have proved their mettle to make it to the championship round," he said.
"Even Manoj fought very well against a well renowned pugilist, there was not much separating the two till the very end, but is fair to say he lost to a better boxer," he added.

Manoj Kumar in Asian boxing championships quarters

 

 New Delhi: Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Manoj Kumar continued his fine form to enter the quarterfinals along with two others as Indian boxers rounded off an all-win day at the Asian Championships in Amman, Jordan.
The light welterweight (64kg) boxer was joined by Mandeep Jangra (69kg) and Sukhdeep Singh (75kg) in the last-eight stage. Manoj, playing his second bout in a bid for the continental crown, hardly broke a sweat against Sri Lankan opponent Mohamed Dilshan.
Manoj was his usual aggressive self right from the word go with his penetrating jabs catching Dilshan off guard on many occasions. He was clearly the superior boxer and made it easy for the judges to declare him winner by a unanimous decision. The 26-year-old will next take on Armi Khir of Malaysia in the quarters.

Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Manoj Kumar continued his fine form to enter the quarterfinals.

In the welterweight division, recently-crowned Limassol Boxing Cup Champion Mandeep was brimming with confidence as he took on Lebanese boxer Antar Khodor. Mandeep, who lost in the quarterfinal of the previous edition of the tournament in 2011, looked keen on making amends to his record.
The 20-year-old was precise in his attacks to dominate the proceedings and maintained a steady lead throughout the three rounds. In the end he won on a unanimous decision. He now has the task of overcoming Nodirbek Kosimov of Uzbekistan in what is expected to be a hard challenge for the Indian. Debutant Sukhdeep also gave a good account of himself as he overhauled South Korean boxer Kim Dachwan in a one-sided contest displaying immense technical soundness. He now faces 2010 World Combat Games bronze-medallist, Jafoyev Navruz of Tajikistan tomorrow.

Injured Van den Broeck pulls out of Tour de France

 
File photo of Jurgen Van Den Broeck of Belgium and the Lotto Belisol Team. (Getty Images)


Aix En Provence, France Belgian rider Jurgen Van den Broeck became the first high-profile casualty of this year's Tour de France when he pulled out injured before the sixth stage.
The rider's team Lotto-Belisol confirmed the news on Thursday.
A spokesman for the team told Reuters by telephone that Van den Broeck, fourth overall in last year's race, sustained a knee injury in a mass pile-up inside the final 200 metres of Wednesday's stage.

Ashwini Akkunji visits Asian Athletics C'ship after serving ban

 

File photo of Indian quarter-miler Ashwini Akkunji. (Getty Images)

 Pune: With her ban period ending on Thursday, dope-tainted double Asian Games gold medallist Ashwini Akkunji made an appearance during the ongoing Asian Athletics Championships here.
Akkunji, one of the six top quarter-milers who flunked dope test in 2011, served a two-year ban and the period ended on Thursday. Even the website of International Athletics Federation (IAAF) has removed her name from the list of sanctioned athlete.
The ban period of five other atheletes - Mandeep Kaur, Sini Jose, Tiana Mary Thomas, Priyanka Panwar and Juana Murmu - has also ended.

The lanky 25-year-old Karnataka athlete said she has no immediate plans to start taking part in competitions. Asked if she was thinking of competing in Europe and try to qualify for the World Championships, Akkunji said, "I have no immediate plans to start competition. It's already late for World Championships, though I think there are a few competitions left for which entry can be made till July 8.
"But I am not going to start taking part in competitions so soon. Maybe I can take part in National Open Athletics Championships in Ranchi in September," said Akkunji, who had won gold in 400m hurdles and 4X400m hurdles in the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.
Akkunji and five other top Indian women quarte-rmilers were caught for steroid doping in 2011 and handed one-year bans by the National Anti-Doping Agency. However, on appeal from the International Athetics Federation (IAAF), the Court of Arbitration for Sports in Switzerland increased the ban to two years.

Discus-thrower Vikas Gowda wins first gold for India

 

Vikas Gowda during the 2012 London Olympics. (Getty Images)
 

 
 Pune: Ace discus-thrower Vikas Gowda clinched the first gold for India as the home team won three medals on the second day to make their presence felt in the 20th Asian Athletics Championships here on Thursday.
Gowda, who turns 30 on Friday, threw the iron disc to a creditable 64.90m in his fourth attempt to win his first gold of the Asian Championships in his fifth appearances. He had won a silver each in the 2005 and 2011 editions.
With this win, Gowda has booked a berth for next month's World Championships in Moscow as each of the winner in the ongoing Asian meet automatically qualifies for the global mega event.

MR Poovamma won a silver in women's 400m race while unheralded Ratiram Saini bagged a bronze in men's 10000m race as India swelled their medal tally to five (1 gold, 1 silver, three bronze). After two days, China leads the medal tally with five gold, two silver and one bronze while India are in the fourth position. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are second and third respectively with two gold each.
Unlike Wednesday, there was no rain on Friday and spurred by the cheering sizable crowd at the Shiv Chhatrapati Stadium at Balewadi, the United States-based Gowda brought his win in a remarkable fashion after trailing to silver winner Mohammad Samimi of Iran (61.93m) until the third round.
Gowda then changed shoes as his feet slipped in the second attempt in which he threw the disc into the side net before coming up with his winning throw in the fourth attempt, much to the wild celebration of the crowd which listened to the National Anthem being played for the first time in the Championships.
Gowda holds the national record of 66.28m while his season's best is 65.82m. Later Gowda, who had also won a silver in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, said that today's win was the best achievement of his career. "Winning a silver in front of a huge crowd in the Commonwealth Games was one of my most memorable moments. But today's gold is right on top of everything," he said at the press conference.
India had hopes of winning gold in the women's 400m but Poovamma, running on a big stage for the first time, finished second in 53.37 seconds. China's Zhao Yanmin won the gold in 52.49 seconds while Taslakian Gretta of Lebanon got the bronze in 53.43 secs. Another Indian Anu Mariam Jose was fourth in 53.49secs.
Poovamma, who ran below her personal best of 52.75 sec, later expressed satisfaction with her performance. "I tried my best and I am satisfied with my performance. I was expecting a medal and I won it. I was expecting competition from the Chinese and she ran a good race," she said. "I am not going to try to qualify for the World Championhsips next month. I am not disappointed," she added.
In the men's 400m, Kunhi Mohammed and Rajiv Arokia came fifth and sixth respectively with timings of 46.61 sec and 46.63 sec in the event won by Yousef Ahmed Masrahi of Saudi Arabia in 46.35 sec.
In the men's 10000m race, the Indians led the field in the initial stages but at the end, Bahrain duo Alemu Bekele (28:47.26) and Bilisuma Shugi (28:58.67) were 1-2 while Ratiram Saini (29:35.42) sprinted out fellow Indian Kheta Ram (29:35.72) for the bronze.
Indian hurdlers Siddhanth Thingalaya (men's 110m hurdles), Gayathry and Hemasree (women's 100m hurdles) advanced to Friday's finals.
China took their second gold of the day with their defending champion Su Bingtian clinching the 100m dash in 10.17 sec to become the fastest athlete of the championships. Bingtian beat Qatari Samuel Adelebari Francis (10.27 sec), the only sprinter from Asia to have run sub-10 seconds, to the second place. Barakat Al Harthi of Oman was third in 10.30 sec.
Wei Yongli made it a memorable day for China by taking the women's sprint title in 11.29 sec. Chisato Fukushima of Japan (11.53) and Tao Yujia of China (11.63) won the silver and bronze respectively. It was the fourth time that China made that 'unique double' of winning the gold medals in 100m in both men's and women's categories in the same championships.
National record-holder Sahana Kumari disappointed the Indian supporters with a fourth-place finish in high jump. She could manage to clear only 1.86m as against her personal best of 1.92m.
Uzbekistan's Nadia Dusanova became the first athlete from her country to win the event in 1.90m. Dusanova's team-mate and pre-event favourite Svetlana Radzivil pocketed the silver after sailing over 1.88m, the same height the bronze medallist Marina Aitova also achieved.
As expected, 2004 Athens Olympics bronze-medallist Dmitry Karpov of Kazakhstan won the decathlon event with 8037 aggregate points - a new championship record.

Andre Greipel sprints to stage win, Daryl Impey takes yellow

 

 Montpellier, France: Germany's Andre Greipel timed his final burst to perfection to win the sixth stage of the Tour de France on Thursday when South Africa's Daryl Impey became the first African to wear the yellow jersey. Greipel, of the Lotto-Belisol team, beat Slovakian Peter Sagan and fellow German Marcel Kittel at the end of a 176.5-km ride from Aix-en-Provence.
Briton Mark Cavendish, winner of the fifth stage, came home fourth after a crash with some 30 kilometres left. Cavendish was fuming after the stage, blaming the incident on his bike. Impey said it was a momentous day for the sport in his home country. "It is definitely going to change things and put cycling on the map in South Africa, and hopefully people will recognise me," the 28-year-old Orica rider said.
Pre-race favourites Chris Froome of Britain, seventh overall eight seconds off the pace, and Alberto Contador, 11th six seconds further back, finished safely in the bunch. "I told the guys to wait as long as possible and everybody to stay together," said Greipel who now has five Tour de France stage victories to his name. "We hit the front with two kilometres to go and I think people can see we have some horsepower. I'm really proud of this team."

Germany's Greipel timed his final burst to perfection to win the sixth stage of the Tour de France while South Africa's Daryl Impey became the first African to wear the yellow jersey.

Greipel's win was even more impressive because team mate Jurgen van den Broeck, fourth overall last year, became the first high-profile casualty when he could not start because of a knee injury he sustained in a pile-up on Wednesday. France's Nacer Bouhanni and Swede Fredrik Kessiakoff, who were also involved in Wednesday's crash, pulled out during the stage. Nairo Quintana had his left knee treated by the race doctor following a crash after the Colombian climber misjudged a turn after 55 kilometres.
Luis Angel Mate powered away from the pack and built a five-minute lead, but the Spaniard soon realised he had no chance on his own against the peloton. The Cofidis rider stopped his effort after one hour and was swallowed by the bunch. With strong winds blowing on the way to Montpellier, tension was palpable in the peloton as top contenders looked to stay in front to avoid being caught in a possible split.
Cavendish, of Omega Pharma Quick-Step, fell with 34 kilometres to go. There was no team mate to drag him back into the peloton and the Briton was forced to bunny-hop over roundabouts and make his own way through the team cars. Cavendish had no juice left for the final sprint and he could not match Greipel's power. Sagan (Cannondale) retained the green jersey for the points classification with 159 points ahead of Greipel (130) and Cavendish (119).

Mouma, Shamini, Ankita enter 3rd round in Asian TT

 

 Busan: National champion K Shamini, veteran Mouma Das and Olympian Ankita Das entered the third round from their respective quarters in the women's singles event at the Asian Table Tennis Championships here on Friday. However, it was curtains for Delhi girl Neha Aggarwal and Maharashtra's Madhurika Patkar.
On a day which saw three women paddlers making progress, two were standout performances and the most talked about being the one between Mouma Das and Singapore's Isabelle Siun Li whom the Indian beat 4-3 in 75 minutes, the longest so far in the championships.
Mouma eventually overcame the Singaporean in a contest that went the full distance with the minimal two-point margin sealing the issue in seventh game. Mouma won 11-6, 11-5, 13-11, 7-11, 17-19, 9-11, 11-9. Mouma will take on Japanese Ishikawa Kasumi in the next round.

Representative image of the game of Table Tennis. (Reuters)

For Akita, it was equally a tough ask against Vietnamese Mai Hoang My Trang who stretched the Indian almost the full distance before Ankita clinched the match 4-2 (6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-6, 8-11, 11-9) in her favour.
As for Shamini, she had the best of outings as she completed her second-round demolition of Iranian Omrani Mahjobeh in less than half an hour with a 4-0 rout. Shamini won 11-8, 11-5, 11-6, 11-6. Shamini will play Chinese Ding Ning in the next round.
But Neha lost her first-round match to Korean Cho Hala 1-4 (8-11, 9-11, 11-9, 4-11, 4-11) while Madhurika Patkar exited in the second round losing to Chinese Liu Shiwen 5-11, 9-11, 3-11, 4-11. Earlier she had beaten Taipei's Huang Hsin 4-2 (11-4, 9-11, 7-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-6).
In men's doubles, the pair of Soumyajit Ghosh and Harmeet Desai lost to Ma Long and Xu Xin 2-3 in the second round, while the other Indian duo of Sharath Kamal and Sanil Shetty entered the third round after they got a walkover from the Iranian pair of Teharkhani Hamidreza and Mohammad Akhlaghpasand.

Nobbs should perform or be shown the door: Pargat Singh

 

 New Delhi: Pargat Singh played a key role in Michael Nobbs' appointment as India's chief hockey coach but the former captain now says it is high time the under-performing Australian is given the "marching orders".
"If he is performing he should stay back, but if not the authorities shouldn't hesitate to give him the marching orders. He should be relieved of his duties immediately if he is not performing," Pargat, who pushed for Nobbs' selection while being the chairman of Hockey India's technical committee, told PTI in an interview.
During his two-year tenure so far, Nobbs has failed to galvanise the sagging fortunes of Indian hockey. Under the Australian, eight-time champions India returned with a wooden spoon from last year's London Olympics.

Former captain Pargat Singh says it is high time the under-performing Australian is given the "marching orders".

Nobbs is presently under pressure to help India qualify for the World Cup in The Hague, Netherlands scheduled for May-June, 2014 after the Sardar Singh-led side failed to secure a direct entry for the showpiece event at the FIH World League semi-final at Rotterdam last month.
Nobbs now faces the risk of being fired from his job if India fail to qualify for the World Cup by winning the eight-nation Asia Cup, scheduled to be held in Ipoh, Malaysia from August 24 to September 1.
Pargat, who is no longer part of the technical committee, also criticised Hockey India's style of working.
"He (Nobbs) was appointed for a five-year tenure. He has completed two years of his job but did Hockey India ever assess his performance? Did the federation take any feedback from the players and other coaches on his style of working?
"What Hockey India needed to do was review his performance yearly. If someone is appointed for a long tenure it doesn't mean he can complete his term without showing any results," said the former defender, who captained India at 1992 Barcelona Olympics and 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

Want to break into top 10 this year: PV Sindhu

 

 New Delhi: On the eve of her 18th birthday, India's rising shuttler P V Sindhu wishes for three things this year -- at least a semifinal finish at next month's World Championship, a place in the top 10 ranking and qualifying for World Super Series Final in December. In a two-year-old international career, Sindhu has broken into top 20 in September 2012, clinched the Malaysian Grand Prix Gold in May this year and now is just two places away from cracking the elite top-10 bracket.
Currently recovering from a knee injury, Sindhu has already chalked out her plan for the year."I had injured my right knee last year, which affected my game. But this year I was fine till the Sudirman Cup where I hurt my other knee. I missed Thailand and Indonesia Open due to the injury but I hope to be fit for the prestigious World Championships," Sindhu told PTI.
"This is the first time I would be playing the World Championships and I would like to at least make it to the semifinals. This is my immediate target," she added. Speaking about her other goals for the year, Sindhu said: "I am world number 12 now and want to break into the top 10 by this year end. Besides, I also want to qualify for the World Super Series. It is not going to be easy as only the top eight qualifies."

Sindhu has broken into top 20 in September 2012, clinched the Malaysian Grand Prix Gold in May this year.

The World Championships is slated to be held in Guangzhou, China from August 5 to 11, while the Super series Finals is scheduled for December 11-15. Though she has achieved a lot in the last couple of years, Sindhu could have done better had it not been for her injuries, which she suffered at an early stage of her international career.
After shocking London Olympics gold medallist Li Xuerui of China at China Masters last year, she was plagued by a right knee injury that also spoilt her Senior Nationals campaign in Srinagar, where she finished runners-up. She also made it to the finals of the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold. Having recovering from the injury completely, Sindhu played in Korea, Malaysia, England, Switzerland and Chinese Taipei this year. She reached the semifinals of the India Open and then went on to win the Malaysian Grand Prix Gold.
But once again injuries came to haunt her when she hurt her left knee at Sudirman Cup in Kuala Lumpur. "Last year, because of injury I could not play in the World Junior and also in the senior nationals I had to play with a knee cap. This year too I had to skip two important events (Thailand and Indonesia)," she said.
Sindhu is one of the six icon players who would start with a base price of USD 50,000 in the July 19 auction of the inaugural Indian Badminton League, which is scheduled to be held from August 14 to 31. "I am really looking forward to IBL. It is a good initiative. I'm waiting for the auctions to find out which team I will represent. It will be exciting," she said.
Born to former volleyball players P V Ramana and P Vijaya, Sindhu could have become a spiker herself but she choose badminton. Inspired by national coach Pullela Gopichand's 2001 All England Championship title, Sindhu dreamt of donning India colours someday and she was well supported by her parents.
"I always had very supportive parents. They have made a lot of sacrifices for me. I remember for the first couple of years, I had to travel a lot to reach the Gachibowli stadium as we were staying in Secunderabad. So they shifted base near Gachibowli," said Sindhu, who is expecting a big bash on her birthday on Friday.

Sprinter Campbell-Brown may get away lightly

 
 London: Jamaican sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown, who tested positive for a banned substance in May, is unlikely to receive the standard two-year ban.
A report in The Times, London meshes with previous remarks from the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) that Campbell-Brown's case appears to involve a "lesser" offence to cheat, despite its ability to act as a masking agent for performance-enhancing drugs.
Campbell-Brown tested positive for a diuretic but the IAAF said that she did not use the substance, reported to be Lasix (furosemide), to cheat, despite its ability to act as a masking agent for performance-enhancing drugs.

Campbell-Brown tested positive for a diuretic but the IAAF said that she did not use the substance to cheat.

A reduced ban from two years can vary from six months to as little as a public warning.
If Campbell-Brown receives a six-month suspension, it will draw comparisons to a ban given to fellow Jamaican Olympic champion sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in 2009. Fraser-Pryce tested positive for Oxycodone, but her ban was reduced to six months after her explanation that she took the banned painkiller for a toothache.
Campbell-Brown, a seven-time Olympic medallist and two-time 200 metres champion, is under a provisional suspension by Jamaica's Athletics Federation, whose disciplinary panel is handling the case.
While Brown herself has not commented since her positive test was first reported last month, her management company On Track Management (OTM) has quoted her as denying knowingly taking a banned substance.

Renjith Maheswary wants to shake off 'passenger' tag

 

 Pune: Triple jumper Renjith Maheswary feels uneasy at being referred to as 'passenger' at big events and says he is determined to shake off the dubious tag in the ongoing Asian Championships and next month's World Championships in Moscow.
Maheswary, who holds the national record of 17.07m when he won a bronze in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, told PTI that he would prove his critics wrong in the next few months as he feels he is in top form.
He could not have a single legitimate jump in all his three attempts in the 2011 World Championships in Daegu, Japan and 2012 London Olympics, leading to officials making oblique references to him as 'passenger' in the Indian contingent.

Maheswary holds the national record of 17.07m when he won a bronze in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

Maheswary has qualified for the Moscow World Championships after clearing 16.98m - his season's best - in the National Inter-State Championships in Chennai last month.
"I want to make amends of my mistakes though they were not intentional. Which athlete wants to have all foul jumps in such big events? Rather every athlete wants to give their best at the biggest stages," Maheswary said.
"I have not thought much about what people say about me but sometimes it's a bit uneasy. I don't have any grudge against anybody but I think I can prove my critics wrong. I am particularly looking ahead to the World Championships next month to make amends for the London Olympics and Daegu World Championships disappointment," he said from Patiala where he is currently training.
Maheswary, who will be reaching here on Friday, said he is in his top form after struggling last year with injuries and looking forward to winning gold in men's triple jump.
"I know it's not going to be easy. There is the veteran Roman Valiyev of Kazakhstan, but I feel I am in top form without any injury. I was struggling last year due to injury issues but now I am raring to go," said Maheswary who won a gold in the 2007 Asian Championships in Amman, Jordan.
"I am looking to clear 17m, so that I go to the World Championships with my confidence high. I felt very good during the National Inter-State in Chennai last month and I think can continue the momentum," said Maheswary.
Valiyev, who won a gold in the 2009 edition in Guangzhou and bagged a bronze in the last edition in 2011 in Kobe, has a personal best of 17.20m, while his season's best is 17.10m.
Maheswary has a personal best national record of 17.07m and a season's best of 16.98m.
Maheswary also spoke highly of his training partner young Arpinder Singh who has a season's best of 16.84m.
"Arpinder is a talented jumper. He is doing consistently above 16.5 in practice and I feel he will also win a medal in Asian Championships," said Maheswary.
Maheswary's event is slated for Saturday (qualifying) and Sunday (finals).
Athletics Federation of India, which had asked Maheswary to furnish proof of fitness just before the London Olympics and expressed unhappiness at his dismal show in the Games, indicated that Maheswary will take part in the Moscow World Championships despite his season's best of 16.98m just crosses 'B' qualifying standard of 16.85m.
"While picking Indian athletes for London Olympics we wanted to check if everybody was fit. In cases of some athletes there was a long gap between the date of qualification and the actual competition, so we wanted to check whether they were fit or not.
"Here in this case, the Asian Championships is being held just a month before the World Championships, so there is no issue," AFI Secretary C K Valson said.
"Our athletes who have already qualified and those who will qualify by winning their respective events in the Asian Championships or otherwise will take part in the World Championships," he added.

Sally Pearson confident Worlds build-up is on track

 

 Sydney: Australia's Sally Pearson is finding her rhythm again after returning from a hamstring injury and is confident she is on track to defend her sprint hurdles title at the World Championships next month, the Olympic champion said.
The 26-year-old Queenslander suffered a hamstring tear in a 4x100m relay at the Asian Grand Prix Athletic Championship in Sri Lanka in May after missing the domestic season with the same injury.
She made a winning return in the Czech Republic last month but lacked her usual speed between the barriers and was fourth in a strong 100 hurdles field at the IAAF Diamond League event in Birmingham on Sunday.

The Australian returning from a hamstring injury is confident of defending her sprint hurdles title at the World Championships.

"I can definitely run faster than what I did in Birmingham. I feel like my rhythm is starting to come back so that's a good thing, and anything around 12.6 would be nice," Pearson said in an Athletics Australia statement.
"I haven't come into this season with too many expectations, but we have made some changes to my programming with a few extra races added to prepare for the World Championships and I'm confident the time will start to come down."
The Diamond League event in Lausanne on Thursday will be her third stop before the World Championships in Moscow in August and Pearson said she had tried to stay patient.
"I'm surprised by how I am dealing with this situation, I thought I would be a lot more anxious than I am," she said. "I'm really happy and relaxed and that's probably because I have already done what I am trying to do this year.
"I've won the world title, I've won the Olympic title and all I want now is the world record but I know that I would be asking too much of myself after the year so far.
"I'm being as patient as I can be, and that's not something that I am usually very good at. It would obviously be nice to go out into these races and win, but after two injuries and only two races I am doing quite well for where my season is at."
Pearson narrowly missed the podium in Birmingham but predicted it would not be too long before he is back to her best.
"I was less that one tenth of a second from the win in Birmingham and those girls have been running for two months," she said.
"After Sotteville (in France) on Monday I have a week to get some training in, then I will run again in Monaco before more training and a race in London.
"There is still a few weeks to the World Championships after that and I think with good training and racing a suitable rhythm to get me onto the podium will come and it will be a matter of who is the best athlete on the day."

PT Usha unhappy with AFI for blocking Luka's participation

 

 Pune: Legendary athlete PT Usha on Thursday criticised the Athletics Federation of India for blocking her protege Tintu Luka's participation in Asian Grand Prix series in May, saying it has robbed the youngster of international exposure.
Usha said Luka - who competes in 800m - was invited by the Asian Athletics Association but the AFI refused to clear her ward on the ground that she had not participated in an earlier national meet.
"The AAA had invited Luka for the Asian Grand Prix but the AFI said she cannot participate as she had not taken part in the Federation Cup (in Patiala in April). That is not good on the part of AFI," Usha, who is here for the Asian Athletics Championships, said.

Usha blamed AFI for refusing Luka to participate in the Asian Championships on the ground that Luka lacked experience.

"Luka was invited on the basis of her London Olympics results (where she finished 12th) and nothing to do with the Federation Cup," said Usha who is fondly called 'Payyoli Express'.
Usha is determined that Luka should take part in next month's World Championships in Moscow and do well there. Each of the winner in the ongoing Asian Championships will book an automatic berth in the World Championships.
"I am sure Luka will win gold here. But whether she wins gold here or not, I want at least a good competition in Europe before going to Moscow.
"But for that I need help and that I don't know if I will get it or not," she added.
Usha, who had held the Asian records in both 400m and 400m hurdles, also had a word of praise for promising quartermiler M R Poovamma, who is expected to win a medal here.
"She is doing well and showing consistency. I hope the best for her. Last when I saw her I though she had more fat than required. Now she has trimmed down," she said.

Mouma, Shamini, Ankita enter 3rd round in Asian TT

 

 Busan: National champion K Shamini, veteran Mouma Das and Olympian Ankita Das entered the third round from their respective quarters in the women's singles event at the Asian Table Tennis Championships here on Friday. However, it was curtains for Delhi girl Neha Aggarwal and Maharashtra's Madhurika Patkar.
On a day which saw three women paddlers making progress, two were standout performances and the most talked about being the one between Mouma Das and Singapore's Isabelle Siun Li whom the Indian beat 4-3 in 75 minutes, the longest so far in the championships.
Mouma eventually overcame the Singaporean in a contest that went the full distance with the minimal two-point margin sealing the issue in seventh game. Mouma won 11-6, 11-5, 13-11, 7-11, 17-19, 9-11, 11-9. Mouma will take on Japanese Ishikawa Kasumi in the next round.

Representative image of the game of Table Tennis. (Reuters)

For Akita, it was equally a tough ask against Vietnamese Mai Hoang My Trang who stretched the Indian almost the full distance before Ankita clinched the match 4-2 (6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-6, 8-11, 11-9) in her favour.
As for Shamini, she had the best of outings as she completed her second-round demolition of Iranian Omrani Mahjobeh in less than half an hour with a 4-0 rout. Shamini won 11-8, 11-5, 11-6, 11-6. Shamini will play Chinese Ding Ning in the next round.
But Neha lost her first-round match to Korean Cho Hala 1-4 (8-11, 9-11, 11-9, 4-11, 4-11) while Madhurika Patkar exited in the second round losing to Chinese Liu Shiwen 5-11, 9-11, 3-11, 4-11. Earlier she had beaten Taipei's Huang Hsin 4-2 (11-4, 9-11, 7-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-6).
In men's doubles, the pair of Soumyajit Ghosh and Harmeet Desai lost to Ma Long and Xu Xin 2-3 in the second round, while the other Indian duo of Sharath Kamal and Sanil Shetty entered the third round after they got a walkover from the Iranian pair of Teharkhani Hamidreza and Mohammad Akhlaghpasand.

Asian Indoor games: India wins Kabbadi gold

New Delhi: Indian men and women's kabaddi teams maintained their domination by winning a gold each in the 4th Asian Indoor Games at Incheon, South Korea today. According to information received from the Chef De Mission, Ravi Kapoor, India has so far won five medals -- two gold, two silver and a bronze.

The men's snooker team comprising Kamal Chawla, Brijesh Damani and Aditya Snehal Mehta finished runners up, while the second silver for the country was claimed by Harbans Kaur in 60kg category of women's Muay Thai. Chitra Mahima Rajan won a bronze.

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Acting President Vijay Kumar Malhotra has hailed the performances in the Asian Indoor games and expressed confidence that the contingent will return home with bigger medal haul.

Perform or perish, Pargat Singh tells coach Michael Nobbs

New Delhi: Pargat Singh played a key role in Michael Nobbs' appointment as India's chief hockey coach but the former captain now says it is high time the under-performing Australian is given the "marching orders".

"If he is performing he should stay back, but if not the authorities shouldn't hesitate to give him the marching orders. He should be relieved of his duties immediately if he is not performing," Pargat, who pushed for Nobbs' selection while being the chairman of Hockey India's technical committee, said in an interview.

During his two-year tenure so far, Nobbs has failed to galvanise the sagging fortunes of Indian hockey. Under the Australian, eight-time champions India returned with a wooden spoon from last year's London Olympics.

Nobbs is presently under pressure to help India qualify for the World Cup in The Hague, Netherlands scheduled for May-June, 2014 after the Sardar Singh-led side failed to secure a direct entry for the showpiece event at the FIH World League semi-final at Rotterdam last month.

Nobbs now faces the risk of being fired from his job if India fail to qualify for the World Cup by winning the eight-nation Asia Cup, scheduled to be held in Ipoh, Malaysia from August 24 to September 1.

Pargat, who is no longer part of the technical committee, also criticised Hockey India's style of working.

"He (Nobbs) was appointed for a five-year tenure. He has completed two years of his job but did Hockey India ever assess his performance? Did the federation take any feedback from the players and other coaches on his style of working?

"What Hockey India needed to do was review his performance yearly. If someone is appointed for a long tenure it doesn't mean he can complete his term without showing any results," said the former defender, who captained India at 1992 Barcelona Olympics and 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

Shot-putter P Udayalaxmi fails dope test, removed from India's Asian Athletics Championships contingent

Pune: In a matter of great shame for sports in the country, an Indian shot putter P Udayalaxmi tested positive in a dope test conducted by the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA).

Udayalaxmi was part of the Indian contingent for the Asian Athletics Championships at Pune. Following the revelation, the Athletics Federation of the country has decided to remove the athlete from its contingent at the championships. 

Udayalaxmi had got gold in the National Inter-state Athletics Championships in June. This however is the second occasion in which the shot-putter had failed a dope test, which could lead to a life ban on her.

India has had the ignominy of its athletes failing dope tests earlier as well. In 2010, 3 members of the women's 4X400 metres relay team that won gold at the Commonwealth Games at Delhi, Ashwini Akkunji, Sini Jose and Mandeep Kaur were found to have failed the dope test.

Other Indian ahletes Juana Murmu, Priyanka Panwar, Tiana Mary Thomas, shot-putter Sonia and men's long jumper Hari Krishnan Muralidharan all had tested positive in NADA tests.  

BOP Group bags Bangalore franchise for Indian Badminton League

 

 New Delhi: The Indian Badminton League (IBL) on Wednesday announced the name of its second franchise - the BOP Group, a Real Estate Consultant in India, who bagged the Bangalore team, 'Banga Beats'.
The group is set to mark its debut in sports with the inaugural USD 1-million IBL, an IPL-style sporting event, an initiative of Badminton Association of India with Sporty Solutionz as the Commercial Partner.
"Badminton has brought huge laurels for India in the past. The IBL has the potential to recapture the interest of the masses through achievements of stars like Saina Nehwal, Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponnappa and others," said Amit Mavi, Managing Director, BOP Group.

IBL announced the name of its second franchise - the BOP Group, a Real Estate Consultant in India, who bagged the Bangalore team, 'Banga Beats'.

"IBL is an ideal opportunity for us to share our passion and zeal for the sport. With the common vision of recognising and nurturing talent amongst the youth, we believe badminton has much to contribute to the league of talented professionals and offer a wider entertainment avenue to sports fans," he added.
Speaking on the association, Ashish Chadha, CEO, Sporty Solutionz, said: "I'm delighted to cement IBL's association with the BOP Group and congratulate them for bagging the Bangalore franchise. BOP has some fantastic plans to promote badminton in India and I'm confident the Group will usher in a new era for the sport with this historic tie-up."
Badminton Association of India, President, Akhilesh Das Gupta said: "Bangalore is one of the hotbeds for nurturing badminton and it surely deserves a great franchise. BOP Group's association with the IBL will go a long way in promoting the sport and inspiring millions of youngsters to take up the sport."
The IBL auction scheduled to be held on July 19 is expected to feature top-50 players in both men's and women's categories. The complete list of players will be announced a week before the auction after the list is first shared with the franchisees as per the IBL's agreement with its partners.
Meanwhile, BOP Group appointed Olympian and former National Champion U Vimal Kumar as the Chief Coach of 'Banga Beats', while former International Vijay Lancy has been named as the CEO.
As a player, Kumar won the prestigious French Open in 1983 and 1984 and the Welsh International Open in 1988 and 1991 and also went on to become India's National Chief Coach.
Kumar also represented India at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, and was ranked in the Top-20 in the world. BOP has appointed former International Vijay Lancy as the CEO of Banga Beats.
The IBL will get underway with some high-voltage action between PVP's Hyderabad Hotshots and BOP Group's Banga Beats on August 14. The tournament will feature six franchises and will run for 18 days. Each franchise will host a two-day leg and the League will showcase a grand total of 90 matches.
The top four franchises will clash in the semifinals and the winners will meet in the grand final on August 31, which will be played in Mumbai.