The Hindu : Sport / Sailing : Rout is Laser radial champion

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 11, 2004

Sport

Sport - Sailing

Rout is Laser radial champion

By A Joseph Antony

HYDERABAD, AUG. 10. B.K. Rout of the Army Yachting Node (AYN), Mumbai emerged the undisputed Laser radial champion at the Hussain Sagar on Tuesday. Another race and day remain for the reckoning of lesser places, but the young native of Orissa need not even sail on the morrow.

Blessed with gusting winds in the morning session, eminently suitable for his strong physique, Rout did not disappoint his mentors — Parashuram, Milind Prabhu, Organising Secretary of the ongoing championships and Gautam Dutta, Laser coach at AYN and former national champion, all of whom were present and delighted at their ward blossoming into a national champ.

Rout got a feel of the wind for the first time at this very lake a little over a year ago. With encouragement from Prabhu and the EME Sailing Association, Rout was sent in January this year to the AYN, where his skills were streamlined. The margin of his victory in the seventh race testified to that, for he finished ahead of his nearest rival by a full leg, the crow distance being between 1.25 to 1.5 kms!

Excited at the prospect perhaps, he had a capsize in the home straight, but made light of it whipping the opposition, that looked non-existent. Steaming in second was Dinesh Boorgu of the Secunderabad Sailing Club, while A. Tripathi, who was initially among the stragglers, steadily improved to finish third.

Conditions in the eighth race seemed tailormade for Rout, wind speeds reaching 15 knots. Familiar with this lake and the wind's ways here, Rout set off on a starboard tack, zig-zagging appropriately with each wind shift. Before long he had left the challengers in his wake and ploughed the lonely lane of a leader way above his class.

Competition in the full rig category still looks open. With another contest to go, N.S. Johal with nine points is hotly trailed by Arjun Pradipak, having 10, while not far behind is Rajesh Choudhary on 13.

The seventh race started with a general recall, after several sailors had jumped the hooter. Choudhary was first to circle the windward mark, followed by Arjun. That combination continued till the completion of the loop. On the third beat, Johal struck a different path on a starboard tack, while the other frontrunners went the port way.

On the third reach, Johal managed to overtake Choudhary, but a momentary loss of balance by the former was just what the latter was looking for, to regain the lead. On the last upwind leg, Choudhary was on to the windward, coming in between Johal and the finish line. Exploiting a lift close to the finish line, Choudhary it was who cleared it first.

A preoccupation with `covering' Johal in the eighth race cost Choudhary dear. The Asian champion had lost his focus on leading the fleet, concentrating his attentions instead on Johal. Arjun upstaged these two successfully, his intentions becoming clear when he bypassed Hari Hara in the frontline on the third beat. On the last upwind leg, Arjun leant into the finish from the left, while Madhu, making a bold gamble by steering to starboard, cut in from the right, a close second to Arjun.

The results:

Laser standard: Race 7: 1. Rajesh Choudhary (AYN) 2. N.S. Johal (AYN) 3. Arjun Pradipak (SSC) 4. P. Madhu (AYN) 5. V. Hari Hara (AYN) 6. Anirudh Vijay Kumar (SSC).

Race 8: 1. Arjun Pradipak (SSC) 2. P. Madhu (AYN) 3. V. Hari Hara (AYN) 4. Rajesh Choudhary (AYN) 5. N.S. Johal (AYN) 6. Anirudh (SSC).

Laser radial: Race 7: 1. B.K. Rout (AYN) 2. Dinesh Boorgu (SSC) 3. A. Tripathi (AYN) 4. Girish Rao (RASC) 5. Dharmender Singh (CESC) 6. Narendra Singh (EMESA).

Race 8: 1. B.K. Rout (AYN) 2. Dinesh Boorgu (SSC) 3. Dharmender Singh (CESC) 4. Meenu Dahiya (AYN) 5. Pravinder Singh (EMESA) 6. Santosh Kumar (EMESA).

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