The Hindu : Sport / Athletics : Labour India PS might find it tough

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jan 04, 2008
ePaper

Sport

Sport - Athletics

Labour India PS might find it tough

Principal Correspondent

KOCHI: They hold six national school records and won nearly half their team’s total points last year. But with the talented twin sisters Niksy and Liksy Joseph moving over to college, life suddenly appears tough for Kerala’s Labour India Public School, the defending champion in the 12th CBSE National athletic meet which begins at the Maharaja’s College Stadium here on Friday evening.

“Apart from the national records, Niksy and Liksy won all our team’s gold medals last year. This year, we just have a bunch of newcomers and I’m new to the school too. It’s going to be very hard,” said A. Avinash Kumar, the Kerala Sports Council coach who is attached to the Labour India School, at Marungattupally near Pala.

P.S. Sijimol, a pentathlon silver medallist and sprint hurdles bronze winner at the recent Junior National in Vijayawada, is Labour India’s biggest name this time but her pet events do not figure in the list of events here.

“She’ll be doing the 400m and the shot put,” said Avinash. Some top names, including Asian middle-distance star Sinimol Paulose and sprinter-hurdler-jumper K.N. Priya, figure in the championship’s record books here but there are very few familiar faces this time. “All are new faces,” said Kerala’s seasoned athletics official Tony Daniel.

International flavour

The meet has some ‘international’ flavour with teams from six Gulf countries — all students of Indian schools there.

Sprinter Rabia Ibrahim leads the Abu Dhabi Indian School’s charge. The school, which has its own synthetic track, has sent 32 athletes, 20 of them girls. “Apart from Rabia, we hope to win a gold from shot putter Nicole Miranda,” said the school’s coach Sanju Shaji George, a former athlete. The five-day meet starts with a opening ceremony on Friday evening. — Principal Correspondent

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport