Saina Newhal is one such sportsperson who has been consistently doing India proud in recent times. Though her recent win in the Swiss Open lost the thunder to the cricket crazy nation where Sachin Tendulkar scored his 100th century in Asia Cup in Dhaka, the 22-year-old is unperturbed. “I got what I wanted. I won! is the straightforward reply. “I did come to know about Sachin's feat and I felt happy for him,” said Saina to Hindustan Times.
After a crackling 2010, Saina endured a disappointing 2011, and things did not change in the first two months of this year either. She came agonisingly close to winning thrice but had to be satisfied with the runners up cheque, something this fiercely competitive player is not used to, writes HT.
“There was a mental block for the last one year, which has gone. I am relieved. Hey, didn't Sachin also say something like this last Friday when he scored his 100th century? “Oh, but he has achieved almost everything. I still have a long way to go...,” said Saina.
Meanwhile in a tragic incident, that again brought to light the poor medical facilities provided for local football tournaments, a 27-year-old player died on Wednesday after he collapsed at the Bangalore Football Stadium during a league match here, says a report in The Times Of India. Venkatesh, a midfielder for A-division side Bangalore Mars, came in as substitute in the 73rd minute before collapsing in the dying minutes of the match. The Bangalore District Football Association, which annually organises the Super, ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C’ divisions, allegedly did not have a doctor present on the field. A physio and players rushed in and tried standard medical procedures on Venkatesh, who by now was having fits, teammate Janardhan said.
Then came the crunch — no ambulance. Though some BDFA members denied the allegation, team manager Shiva, who is also a BDFA member, said there was a tempo on standby at the eastern wing of the stadium. “The only reason we couldn’t get it out in time was that there were many two wheelers parked around it,” he said.
According to TOI, players and officials carried Venkatesh in their arms off the field, hired an autorickshaw and rushed him to Hosmat Hospital, where he was declared brought dead. “There was no pulse or respiration. We gave him CPR and defibrillator shocks, but it was too late,” Hosmat vice-president Dr Ajith BenedictRoyan said.
Meanwhile NRAI is in the thick of storm once again. From being the parent body of shooting in the country, the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) is in the firing line for 'cheating' an aspiring coach, says a report in Hindustan Times. Akhilesh Pratap Singh of Bikaner has filed a case under Sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 120(B) (criminal conspiracy) against top NRAI officials for “throwing him out“ of the international shooting federation (ISSF) Jury Judges Course at Asansol in September.
Akhilesh, a pistol shooter and organiser of state-level championships in Rajasthan, completed the formalities for the course and even attended the introductory lecture on September 17, 2011, but when he came back after the break, the instructors told him that his name had been struck off the list. “They misbehaved and virtually threw me out,” said Akhilesh. Copies of communication with the NRAI show that Akhilesh's registration had been accepted by the NRAI.
