SPORTS BRIEF 

Date:18/02/2007

Sports academy evaluation kicked off in Mizoram 

NET News Network 

Aizawl, Feb 21: The first SSA Sports Academy Evaluation was kickstarted by School Education minister Dr Lalthangliana at Govt Mizo Higher Secondary School ground on Tuesday. 

As many as 764 sports persons from the districts of Aizawl, Serchhip, Saiha, Mamit, Lunglei, Lawngtlai, Kolasib and Champhai are participating at the 3-day events. 

Lalthangliana said that the SSA Sports Academy, which is only one year old, has made great achievement, and attributed it to the contributions made by SSA officials, sports associations and police department in each district who give training to pipe bands in the academy. 

"Not only that it is good for health, sports has come as a good profession. With the SSA Sports Academy, we are aiming to make educated professional sports persons," he said as he kickstarted the event. 

Explaining why the Evaluation is needed, the minister said, "Our own judgement of being successful is not enough. In this Evaluation, designated officials of sports associations will judge our achievements in various sports disciplines," he said.

Services finish atop 'best ever National Games' 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 18: Assam proved the doubting Thomases wrong as they hosted the 33rd National Games in a manner that would make any state proud. 

The northeastern state bid for the Games in a period of severe financial crunch and frequent floods and not many would have bet on a largely-incident free mega event. 

There was speculation whether the Games would be held at all with the banned separatist outfit ULFA carrying out attacks on non-Assamese people throughout the state. 

But the Games went better than most of the observers, including the Indian Olympic Association, had expected beforehand. 

There were thousands of keen sports lovers at each venue with many having to be sent back with the stadia already filled to the brim. They came from far and wide and had to walk long distances to get to the venues but that did not dampen their enthusiasm. 

The infrastructure was of the highest standards and the organisers left no stone unturned to make the players and other visitors comfortable. 

On the medal tally, Services came back with a bang to outstrip runaway leaders Manipur who almost stalled at the finish line. The defence contingent thus claimed the coveted Raja Balendra Singh Trophy for the first time. 

Manipur ruled the combat sports but their haul slowed down thereafter.  

The servicemen finished with 59 gold medals, 46 silver and 37 bronze to get ahead of Manipur (51-32-40). It was a remarkable achievement considering that the Services contingent consisted exclusively of men and thus had much fewer events to compete in. 

There was reason for much cheer as the host state proved to be a force to be reckoned with in national sport with a tally of 148 medals, including 38 gold, for third place. 

It was an incredible jump from a tally of 11 medals (one gold) achieved at Hyderabad in 2002.

The Games were the biggest so far with around 11,000 participants from 33 contingents (29 states, three union territories and Services). There were a record 32 disciplines, including four debutants (lawn bowls, rugby sevens, wushu and karate). 

In a heartening feature, as many as 30 teams, including debutants Nagaland and the tiny Andaman and Nicobar islands, managed to win medals. 

The Games saw 46 meet records rewritten with another equalled as competitors showed true sporting spirit in striving to give their best performance to bring glory to their teams. 

No wonder IOA President Suresh Kalmadi described the Guwahati national Games as the "best ever". 

However, the bus accident involving 20 people, including 12 Services rowers, was an unfortunate incident to take place during the Games. Fortunately, all the competitors were out of danger. 

The weather, which was considered to be a concern in the lead-up, also co-operated to a large extent and only affected events on one day.

World champions Lekha, Jenny dominate in women's boxing 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 17 : World champion pugilists Lekha K.C and Jenny Lalremliani confidently picked up their gold medals defeating Assam's Polly Sonowal and Delhi's Pinky in the women's category in the 33rd National Games here Saturday.

Lekha, representing Kerala, punched out hosts Assam's Sonowal as the referee had to stop the contest in the 80 kg category.

Likewise, Mizoram's Jenny was too hot for Pinky and the referee also had to stop the contest and declare the world champion as the winner in the 63 kg category.

Asian Games bronze medallists, Vijender Singh of Haryana won the gold in the men's 75 kg category without sweating much as his opponent Amarjit Singh of Goa retired soon during the bout.

Orissa claim men's hockey bronze in violence-marred match

NET News Network

Guwahati, Feb 17: An enthralling exhibition of fast-paced hockey was marred in the end as umpires were assaulted by some players even as Orissa secured the bronze medal in the National Games men's hockey competition with a 3-2 win over hosts Assam here today. 

The two teams were locked 2-2 at half-time at the Bhetapara Stadium but Orissa emerged winner in the second half. 

Assam showed great character in coming back from a two-goal deficit but Orissa scored the winner midway through the second half. 

The first half was a rollicking affair and Orissa wasted little time in taking control of the proceedings.

Assam could have taken the lead but missed a penalty stroke as early as the fifth minute. 

They were made to pay when Deepak Ekka found the target for Orissa in the sixth minute before Banamali Xess doubled the lead in the 21st. 

Assam came back into the match when Kulbhushan Vashist converted a penalty corner in the 24th minute and restored parity when Ratul Ansary sounded the boards in the 27th, much to the delight of the home crowd. 

However, Dilip Kerketta made the all-important strike in the 52nd minute to seal the medal for Orissa. 

Assam had got a penalty corner with eight minutes to go but could not capitalise. 

But the result was overshadowed with the attack on the two umpires after the final whistle when the home players were dissatisfied with the time added on for an interrup. 

Assam were generally unhappy with the conduct of the match by umpires Virender Singh and Parveen Kumar and vent their frustration about the time to be added on after the regulation 70 minutes, which in fact is the task of the technical officials sitting outside. 

Substitute goalkeeper Swapan Das wanted more playing time and was the first to hit Parveen with his stick and Virender was injured when he tried to protect his colleague. 

Other Assam players, including Manoj Das, then joined the assault. 

The umpires suffered blows on the shoulders, side and back and one of the umpires was seen a bit bloodied. Tournament director Birendra Singh, who rushed to stop the fracas, was also hit. 

Luckily, there were no serious injuries and they were treated at the Maulana Mohammad Tayabullah Stadium at Bhetapara itself. 

The Assam team was promised a lot of financial benefits if they won a medal. This factor induced several players from outside to turn out for the state. The frustration at missing out on the money may have had something to do with the incident. 

The tournament director has written to Assam Hockey Association asking them to furnish the names of the players involved in the incident and demanded that they be banned for at least five years. 

He also wanted that the captain and the manager be given a severe reprimand. The umpires will submit their report for the match to the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) and a lot will depend on their report.

Shortage of dope control officials at Games 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 16: The doping control exercise at the 33rd National Games is a story about severe shortage of expert personnel in the field in the country and the administration's apathy towards its trained staff. 

As per information provided by the organisers, there are only 16 dope control officials spread over 17 venues at the Games, which works out to be less than one per stadium. 

It is pertinent to wonder how these officials are coping during the 10-day sporting extravaganza which features around 8,000 competitors. 

The worrying aspect is that the shortfall is not likely to be met very soon. 

"Not many want to take up dope control as a full-time career option as it is a very stressful occupation," an official told media. 

"There is great pressure as a lot rest on the work of these experts," the dope official, who is working at the National Games, said. 

Besides, that the country does not have a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)-accreditated dope lab means that the samples from the 33rd National Games have to be sent to Bangkok and the results take three or four days to come back. 

To tide over the crisis, the organisers have called up several experts from outside Assam. 

"I am employed elsewhere and had to take leave for coming to Guwahati. I am only doing this work because I have an interest in sport," he said.  

The official Games newsletter claims that the Indian Olympic Association has constituted a big anti-doping team comprising experts pooled from different parts of the country but the ground reality spells something else. 

The organisers also claim to have a ready stock of medicine, including life-saving drugs, in accordance with the prescribed norms of the WADA. 

The Games' Medical and Anti-Doping Committee is the supervisory authority over a total of 220 doctors (including the dope control officials) and more than 400 paramedics. State Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is the committee's chairman. 

The organisers have also put up banners and posters at numerous places around the different venues informing about the hazards of doping. 

"Is doping healthy? Clean Sports - That's What We Stand For" is the banner seen at various locations. 

The lack of adequate number of dope officials has not allowed any breathing space for the 16 experts present here and under the constant pressure, the possibility of crucial mistakes cannot be ruled out. 

"We start our day very early. On some days, we have to leave hotel well before daybreak and return very late at night," the dope official, who had come for the Games from another state, said.

Meghalaya, WB win men's and women's soccer bronze 

NET News Network

Guwahati, Feb 16: Meghalaya won the bronze medal beating Bengal in the play-off for third position in the men's football of the 33rd National Games here today. 

Playing at the Maligaon North East Frontier Railway stadium complex, Meghalaya found some consolation after their heart-breaking semifinal defeat at the hands of Tamil Nadu by beating the formidable Bengal side by a solitary goal to win the bronze. 

Striker Laldingiana scored the winner in the 45th minute. 

In the women's play-off played in the Sports Authority of India complex (SAI) for third position, Bengal had something to cheer when their team won the bronze beating Goa 2-1. 

It was Goa who went up with Sharon Fernandes finding the goal in the 29th minute. 

But Bengal rallied from behind and levelled at 48th minute through Silpi Dev while Sharmila Sapru completed the scoreline in the 61st minute.

Rs.10 million to boost sports in Assam 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 16: Enthused by the massive response from the local public at the ongoing 33rd National Games, the Assam government has decided to spend Rs.10 million to promote sports in the state. 

"Our chief minister has decided on having this corpus and this is going to be executed through a public-private partnership," said Power Minister Pradyut Bordoloi, who is also the chairman of the media and publicity committee of the National Games. 

"We can now hold any event with this experience. The chief minister has already said that we can host the SAF (South Asian Federation) Games to start with," he added. 

Double delight for Manipur in sepak takraw 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 16: Manipur won double crown in sepak takraw by claming both the men's and women's team honours at the 33rd National Games here today. 

Assam bagged two silver medals while Delhi and Nagaland garnered one bronze apiece at the N F Railway indoor stadium, Maligaon. 

In the women's final, Manipur got past Assam 2 0, while Nagaland beat Delhi by the same margin in the third place play-off to take the bronze. 

The Men's team final saw Manipur cruising past hosts Assam 2-0. 

The bronze medal clash saw Delhi triumphing over Tamil Nadu 2 0. 

Maharashtra beat Delhi to claim women's hockey bronze 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 16: Maharashtra claimed the bronze medal in the women's hockey competition at the 33rd National Games with a convincing 3-0 victory over Delhi here today.

The victors, who led 1-0 at half-time, scored through Ranjita Devi, Benita Toppo and Saba Anjum. 

Maharashtra had to wait till the 25th minute when Ranjita found the target for her field goal. 

They doubled the lead five minutes into the second half when Benita Toppo converted her sides' fifth penalty corner. 

The team from the western state put the finishing touches on a fine performance when India international Saba Anjum scored the third goal in the 65th minute. 

Delhi were never a major threat in an attacking way and could manage only one penalty corner in the entire match. 

In fact, Maharashtra could have won by a much bigger margin had they taken better advantage of their eight penalty corners. They only capitalised on one of them. 

Haryana and Jharkhand will face off for the gold medal in the event tomorrow. 

Urine samples of 200 athletes sent to Bangkok 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 16: Urine samples of about 200 athletes at the National Games here have been sent to Bangkok for dope tests. 

A dope testing department source said that as per the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) guidelines, 250 urine samples have to be tested in an International Olympic Committee authorised centre. Officials accordingly made a random collection of samples of both medal winners and other athletes and sent them for testing.

Result in men's 20km walk reversed 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 15: The track and field officials at the 33rd National Games faced a major embarrassment today when the original result in the men's 20km walk was reversed with Services' Somendro Singh being disqualified and Assam's Oinam Sushil Kumar Singh declared the gold medallist. 

Somendro finished first in the 50 lap event at the Indira Gandhi Stadium yesterday ahead of the Assam athlete but the host state protested that the Services walker had completed only 49 laps. 

The technical committee under the chairmanship of Athletics Federation of India General Secretary Lalit Bhanot went through the video footage provided by Doordarshan before declaring Sushil Kumar Singh as the winner. 

The reversal would be a major embarrassment for the officials as the official report on the event did not mention any discrepancy. 

"We can only go by the reports from our technical officials who did not see anything wrong," an official had said yesterday. 

The technical committee decided to disqualify Somendro and give the silver medal to P S Jalen of Services while Assam's Gurmeet Singh got the bronze medal. 

The official result of the event mentions Somendro as DNF (Did Not Finish). 

"The committee watched the video evidence and agreed with the contention of the Assam delegation that the officials had indeed made a mistake, an AFI office-bearer told 

Eventful morning in track and field 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 15: It was an eventful morning at the track and field events in the National Games as records were rewritten and new success stories emerged here today. 

Kerala's Preeja Sreedharan captured her third gold medal of the Games when she won the women's 5,000m at the Indira Gandhi Athletics Stadium. 

Preeja, who had earlier claimed top honours in the 1500m and 10,000m, became the most successful track and field athlete at the Games so far. 

She came home in 17 minutes, 1.79 seconds in today's race, pipping Maharashtra's Madhuri Gurnule who clocked 17 minutes and 2.20 seconds. Jharkhand's Preeti Rao claimed bronze in a time of 17:2.83 sec. 

In the corresponding race for men, Jharkhand's Sunil Kumar bagged the yellow metal clocking 14:17.47 sec, setting a new Games record in the process. In fact, all the three medallists finished within the previous record time. 

The previous mark of 14:21.60secs was set by Tara Singh way back in the New Delhi Games in November 1985.

The silver medal went to Services' Surendra Singh who came home in 14:17.93 while Jharkhand's Kashinath Aswale (14:18.86) claimed the bronze medal. 

The same was the case in the men's marathon as Services made a clean sweep of the medals with the top three finishers coming home inside the previous meet record. 

L Benning was the gold medalist clocking 2:17:32.00secs ahead of Satya Prakash and Vikram Singh who both clocked 2:20:38.00. Satya Prakash got the silver via photo finish. 

The previous record stood in the name of O Oken Singh who clocked 2:24:15 secs in Imphal in February 1999.

SFI sends proposal to govt to appoint foreign coach 

Guwahati, Feb 14: Despite its earlier request being turned down, the Swimming Federation of India has sent a fresh proposal to the government for hiring a foreign coach as part of its long-term training programme for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. 

The SFI has shortlisted USA's Paul Andrew Nelsen and Dean John Boxall of Australia and requested the government for finalising the appointment of one of them for training promising juniors and some of the earmarked talented senior competitors keeping the quadrennial extravaganza in mind. 

"We want to start the training programme from April. There are several important international engagements coming up before the 2010 event. Our first target is next years Commonwealth Youth Games and then the Olympics," SFI secretary general Virendra Nanavati told PTI in an interview. 

Nanavati said once the government gave the go-ahead, the foreign coach would be initially appointed till the Commonwealth Youth Games slated to be held in Pune from October 12-18 next year. 

"If we find we are progressing in the right direction under the foreign coach, we may continue his services till 2010. Otherwise, we may review his performance and change him," he said. 

While Boxall has asked for a monthly salary of USD 6000 plus perks, Nelsen has demanded USD4500 plus other emoluments. The amount being much higher than the USD 2000 doled out by the government for hiring foreign coaches, the SFI has requested the sports ministry to raise the amount. 

"We are asking the government to raise the amount. We are also trying to rope in some sponsors," said Nanavati, who has been holding the office for more than 20 years.  

Nanavati cited shortage of funds as the sole reason for the SFI's failure to rope in a foreign coach despite repeated efforts for the last four years. "I myself spoke to more than 20 coaches. But their demands were so high that we could not afford. At the same time it will not be worthwhile to compromise on quality, as no purpose will be served by importing someone who has only club level experience," he said, adding both Nelsen and Boxall had impeccable credentials. 

"But this time we are quite hopeful. The government has assured us that as swimming has the highest number of medals, it will give us full support." The federation was also working on a plan to send six to eight talented swimmers to Germany for intensive training for the 2010 Games. 

"German coach Olav Sphal, who was in India last September to conduct a coaches clinic, had given us the proposal. The institute in Germany he is attached to has the highest level infrastructure and all the support facilities that swimmers need. It involves huge funds. We have approached the government for funds." Nanavati said the SFI would hold a training camp beginning from February 26 in Bangalore for the world championship to be staged in Melbourne from March 17-April 1. 

Around ten swimmers will be sent for the world championship. 

"The names will be announced after the ongoing National Games. We are projecting those swimmers who have a chance to qualify for the Olympics, like say Veerdhaval Khade." "Though we will be giving some financial assistance, we cannot meet the entire expenditure. So, only those who can afford will be projected," he said.

Deepmala sets meet record in 20km walk 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 13: L Deepmala Devi of Assam set a meet record in the women's 20km walk with the other two medallists also improving upon the previous mark on the third day of athletics competition at 33rd National Games here today. 

Deepmala, who holds the national record at 1 hour 39 minutes and 00.6 seconds, came home in 1:41:07.20 seconds to claim the gold medal. 

The previous mark was in the name of Ravina Antil who clocked 1:49:51.0 seconds in Ludhiana in the 2001 Games. 

Silver medallist Amandip Kaur of Punjab also finished inside Antil's mark coming home in 1:43:43.70 seconds while Manipur's Lamnganbi Devi Waikhom also bettered the mark with the timing of 1:49:06.70 seconds.

Assam enters semifinal in men's football 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 13: Hosts Assam came from behind to held a resurgent Kerala 2-2 and enter the semifinal of the men's football tournament of the 33rd National Games here today. 

Cheered by the home crowd, Assam fought back after Kerala slammed two goals in the first half in a keenly contested match at the Nehru stadium. 

Assam's mercurial striker Mrinal Boro produced a gem of a goal just minutes before the hooter as the crowd broke into wild celebration. 

Kerala shot into the lead at the eighth minute when Jackson Sebastian was quick to pounce on a defensive lapse and shot home from a close range. 

The packed local crowd were taken aback when in the 45th minute Kerala went 2-0 up as Rajesh Kumar collected a measured pass from the midfield and dribbled past two defenders before shooting in. 

The two setbacks rattled the home team as they committed several errors infront of their goal and were infact lucky to go into the breather 0-2. 

With the sun coming out through the dark clouds hovering over the stadium since the start of play, Assam fortunes turned for the better as they came up a changed side in the second half. 

The hardworking skipper Sanjeeva Rongpi, who many good moves in the match, was instrumental in bringing down the margin as he scored after being perfectly fed from the left flank in the 56th minute. 

Thereafter the home time cheered by the partisan crowd made several forays into the rivals defences but to no avail and found the goal ever eluding.  

A certain defeat in the crucial Group 'B' encounter loomed large as ninety minutes of play ended and was extended to injury time. 

This was the turn of Boro who dribbled past several defenders to produce a superb solo effort and score the equaliser. 

The players fell on Boro and rejoiced as a dejected Kerala side walked off the turf. 

The other team from the group would be decided in the match between holders Punjab and runners up Bengal later today. 

In a group A match at the North East Frontier Railway sports complex in Maligaon, Tamil Nadu brightened their hope of making it to the semis by holding Mahrashtra to goalless draw.

The match failed to reach any height as Tamil Nadu was determined to draw the match and earn three points which would help them in getting to the last four. 

Play was mostly confined to the midfield as the Tamil Nadu defence foiled efforts of the aggressive Maharashtra forwards to create any opening. 

A handful of crowd in a overcast morning was left dejected by the quality of soccer as there were only few goal scoring opportunities in the encounter. 

The semifinal line-up would be clear after Meghalaya, which has already clinched a semifinal berth, take on Haryana in another match today.

Manipur continue to dominate

NET News Network

Guwahati, Feb 12: Raining medals in three combat sports disciplines, Manipur continued their march atop the medal tally widening the gulf with their nearest rival Delhi on the fourth day of the 33rd National Games here today.

The Manipur competitors picked gold medals aplenty in wushu, besides ruling the show in fencing and taekwondo to boost their aggregate of yellow metals to 35.

Compared to Manipur's haul of 63 medals (35-13-15), Delhi managed 38 (14-10-14) as one record tumbled in athletics and two got drowned in swimming.

With a strong showing in wrestling, equestrian and wushu, Haryana (12-9-10) upstaged Assam to move up into the third spot in the medal ladder, on a day when things began to settle down in the Games after the shock of the bus accident near the Games village yesterday when 20 people including 16 competitors were injured.

Hosts Assam closely trailed Manipur at the fourth spot with 10 gold, 17 silver and 21 bronze.

In the showpiece track and field, West Bengal's Harishankar Roy set a new meet record in high clearing a distance of 2.14m to claim first place, bettering the record of M Lorens, set in 2001, by a centimeter. 

Tamil Nadu's Starli also cleared 2.14m but had to settle for silver as his effort came in the second attempt as against the first for Roy. 

The bronze medal went to Kerala's Prince Jose with 2.05m. 

Karnataka's Poonam Bojanna upset the favourite, Orissa's Anuradha Biswal in the women's 100m hurdles through a photo finish as Uttar Pradesh reaped rich harvent in the discipline claiming three out of the 11 gold medals on offer.

Career of three injured rowers in jeopardy 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 12: Career of at least three Services rowers, who were injured yesterday in a bus accident near the National Games site here, are in serious jeopardy. 

Sustaining serious injuries in his right arm, international rower Gurchar Singh is now under treatment at the Guwahati Neurological Research Centre where the doctors are pulling all stops to save his arm. 

"He was admitted with a serious injury. He underwent an operation. Now his condition is stable," Nomal Bora, the CMD of the GNRC told media today. 

Asked whether it would be possible to save his arm, Bora said: "I can only say that so far we have not taken a decision to go for an amputation." 

Some officials of the Services contingent feel that the playing career of Gurchar and two others who were among the 12 rowers injured could be as good as over. 

Their strength severely depleted, strong favourites Services have pulled out of the discipline in the Games. 

The Rowing Federation of India secretary general Col C P Singh Deo termed the accident as a great loss to the players as well as rowing as a whole. 

"But at the moment, our main concern is to ensure the safety and complete recovery of all the injured athletes," he told newspersons. 

Another top rower Hardev Singh has received facial injuries, but is recovering well. "There is no need for him to undergo any plastic surgery," Bora said. 

The third critically injured rower Sunil Kumar has received multiple injuries in his head, hand and waist. "He is also on the way to recovery," Bora added.

Delhi beat Chandigarh to reach tennis semis 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 12: Defending champions Delhi rallied to beat Chandigarh and move into the semifinals of the men's tennis team competition at the 33rd National Games here today. 

Formidable Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal also carved out victories to make their way into the pre-summit round at the newly-built All Assam Tennis Association complex, Chachal. 

Chandigarh's Vijayant Malik put his side ahead with a three-set 6-3 5-7 and 6-3 triumph over Ashutosh Singh, but Divij Sharan drew parity for Delhi decimating Tushar Sharma 6-0 6-0. 

In the doubles, Ashutosh paired with Divij to get past Tushar and Vijayant 6-4 6-1 and end Chandigarh's campaign. 

Maharashtra, who won four back-to-back titles till they were overthrown by Delhi in Hyderabad in 2002, did not have to toil much in registering a 2-0 win over Andhra Pradesh in the quarterfinals. 

In other quarterfinal encounters, West Bengal beat Assam 2-1 while Tamil Nadu defeated Punjab 2-0.

Maharashtra upset Kerala in men's football 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 12: Maharashtra men's football team shocked strong contenders Kerala 2-0 to cause a major upset at the 33rd National Games here today. 

In a Group B encounter at the North East Frontier Railway Sports stadium at Maligaon, Jinto Jose drew first blood for Maharashtra in the 29th minute. 

Relentless attacks by the Kerala forwards failed to earn any dividend as the Maharashtra defence guarded their fort well. 

Untill the 89th minute Kerala tried hard for the equaliser but in vain. 

In the dying minutes, Prabhat Janardhan dribbled past a couple of defenders to easily beat the Kerala goal keeper and seal win for Maharashtra. 

In women's category, Goa got past a fighting Kerala 2-1 at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) complex here. 

Goa opened the score when striker Domiana Gendes beat the Kerala custodian in the third minute after getting a masured pass from the midfield. 

Aniruddha Arvind, however, struck the equaliser as she took advantage of a lapse in Goa defence and shot home in the 37th minute. 

The Kerala defenders faltered to provide room for the fast moving Goans who penetrated well and Blanka Bereto made it 2-1 in the 37th minute.

Assam does a Qatar to boost its fortune! 

Guwahati, Feb 11: Following the footsteps of Qatar at the Asian Games and Andhra Pradesh at domestic level, Assam has lured players from various states to boost its prospects in hockey at the 33rd National Games. 

Powered by the imported players, Assam men's hockey team yesterday upset Punjab, known as a cradle of hockey in the country, 5-3. But, there was a little in the host side which could be termed Assamese. 

Not more than three of the 16 players of the team were from Assam with the rest being assembled from various states such as Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur and Uttar Pradesh. 

The players who originally belonged Assam were Manoj Das, Swapan Kumar Das and Saurav Goswami. 

The squad featured names such as Rajnish Mishra, Sameer Dad and Brojen Singh, who have played international matches and played with distinction for their states or employers. 

In fact, the victory, which sent the home fans at the Maulana Md Tayabullah hockey stadium at Bhetapara into a frenzy was to a large extent, was fashioned by goals from Dad (two), Manipur's Chinglensana Singh and Brojen Singh Thokchom. 

In the last edition of the Games in Hyderabad, hosts Andhra Pradesh had hired several players from other states by offering them handsome incentives. 

This time around, Assam is offering Rs 3 lakh for gold medallists and Rs 2 lakh and Rs 1 lakh for silver and bronze winners respectively.  

The same is the case with the state's women's hockey team which had a lot of the players hailing from other states. In fact, most of them are from Punjab while some are from Orissa and northeastern states. 

The three local girls on the team sheet for today's match against Uttar Pradesh were Kanmai Moran, Rupama Gogoi and Suprobha Deury. 

"Some of the outside players stay in Assam while some have been hired just to play in these National Games," a source said. 

"It is not known whether they will stay or return to their native states after the Games," he added. 

However, the source claimed that such a situation had happened only in hockey whereas in other disciplines, Assam was fielding own players. 

"There is a sizeable number of Assam Police personnel in the contingent," a Games official said.

Meghalaya upset mighty Bengal in men's soccer 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 11: Rank outsiders Meghalaya scored a major in men's football by drubbing last edition's finalist Bengal 4-1 in a Group 'A' match in the 33rd National Games here today.

Watched by a capacity crowd at the North East Frontier Railway Sports Association ground at Maligaon here, Meghalaya created a sensation by pumping in as many as three goals in the last six minutes. 

The soccer crazy north-eastern state team took advantage of the gaps in Bengal's defence as their forwards moved up in a bid to go all out for a win. 

The short but pacy Meghalaya team brought cheers for their fans who had travelled all the way from the neighbouring state to watch the game as Niwan Gatphos scored in the 84th minute, followed by K lynsingh in the 88th minute before Romeo drove the final nail on Bengal's coffin in the 89th minute. 

Earlier, it was Gatphos for Meghalaya who helped his team go one up in the 38th minute before Gouranga Dutta of Bengal levelled in the 62nd minute. 

In the women's football match at the Sports Authority of India complex, a spirited Orissa held defending champions Manipur to a one all draw. 

Alochana Sengupta for Orissa helped her team to go on the lead in the 76th minute before Mani Tombi of Manipur levelled in the 88th minute.

Manipur picks three gold in Wushu 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 10: Manipur showed their might by picking up three golds, while hosts Assam closely followed with two yellow metals in the martial arts discipline of wushu at the 33rd National games here today. 

Manipurs H Dewan Singh won the title in men Chang quan, while his female counterparts W Shakhenbi and N Premita Devi clinched the honours in nan quan and taiji kuan respectively at the Ganesh Mandir Indoor stadium, Khanapara. 

Assams S Sagolselm ensured a top podium finish in men nan quan, while T N Ayapana emerged champion in womens chang quan. 

Delhi also eteched their name in the golden tally from the discipline with its competitor Sadananda winning the gold in mens taiji quan. 

Assam upset Punjab in men's hockey 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 10: Hosts Assam caused a major upset at the 33rd National Games when they defeated formidable Punjab 5-3 in the men's hockey competition here today. 

In a thrilling Group B encounter at the Maulana Md Tayabullah hockey stadium at Bhetapara, the home team came from behind twice to register the landmark result. 

The hosts scored through C S Singh (32nd minute), T H Brojen (55th), S Dad (57th and 63rd) and Sanjib (65th). 

Punjab found the target through Gagandeep Singh (10th and 61st) and Satwinder Singh (54th). 

In other matches of the day, Chandigarh held Orissa 1-1, Delhi beat Tamil Nadu 2-0 and Services pipped Maharashtra 2-1. 

In the match involving the hosts, Punjab drew first blood when Gagandeep latched onto a long ball and beat two defenders before slotting one past Assam custodian Jagdish. 

Assam drew parity just before the half-time when C S Singh tapped home from a goalmouth melee following a penalty corner attempt. 

The match came to life in the final 20 minutes when as many as six goals were scored. 

The turning point was the yellow card to Punjab's Kuljit Singh which left his team a man short. However, the north Indian team scored their second goal when Satwinder deflected a free-hit taken from outside the striking circle. 

Cheered on by the local crowd, Assam went on the attack and restored parity through a penalty corner rebound by Brojen. They took the lead soon after as Dad received the ball from Sanjib to beat Punjab goalkeeper K M Subyia. It was 3-3 when Gagandeep converted a penalty corner, but Assam scored twice in two minutes to settle the issue in their favour.

Bengal starts games campaign in style 

NET News Network 

Guw3ahati, Feb 10: Bengal started their 33rd National Games campaign in style as they comprehensively won both the men's and women's football matches here today. 

In a preliminary men's group match played at the North East Frontier Railway Stadium at Maligaon, holders Bengal thrashed Haryana 3-0 with striker Gouranga Dutta scoring a brace.

In a match where tempers flayed, forward Amjad Ali Khan of Haryana was sent off for rough tackling after shown double yellow cards in the second half. 

Forward Sankar Sil's stinging left footer found the goal for Bengal in the 35th minute before striker Gouranga Dutta made it two nil in the 71st minute. 

Dutta sealed the match for his team in the 82nd minute when he shot home from close range 

In the women's category, runners up Bengal stuck to their two goal lead during the breather to beat Kerala at the Sports Authority of India complex here today. 

Although the scoreboard did not reflect the style of play Bengal totally dominated the match and could have won by a bigger margin as their forwards failed to convert easy chances. 

Striker Sipli Dev opened the score for Bengal in the third minute while Deepa Bera made it 2-0 in the 44th minute.

Major goof-ups mark opening day of National games  

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 9: Even as the Assam Government prematurely beat its own drum about hosting the 33rd National Games, its lack of experience in organising big-time sporting event was exposed on the opening day that saw some major goof-ups, including the embarrassment that saw the home football team take the field in borrowed jerseys. 

The men's football team regained some pride for the hosts by coming out trumps to notch up a 4-0 victory against Maharashtra in a Group A encounter, but not before the drama surrounding their official wear. 

Assam Football Association Secretary Hemendranath Baruah said yesterday they waited till midnight for the jerseys at the Games office and threatened to withdraw from the competition if the persons responsible were not punished and the lapse was not redressed. 

But the team came out in jerseys provided by the Guwahati Sports Association as their uniform did not reach before the start of the match. 

If that was not enough, the match started half an hour late as the officials waited for the medical team to arrive. They eventually conducted the game without one. 

But, on organisational front, there were further goof-ups as only two events -- football and women's hockey -- could be held whereas other scheduled events for the day such as volleyball, wrestling and gymnastics were deferred. These events were supposed to take place in the evening but were put off because of the opening ceremony. 

No new dates for these events have been finalised yet.  

In men's football, Punjab defeated Meghalaya 2-1 in a Group B encounter.  

In the women's section, defending champions Manipur got their campaign off to a solid start defeating Tamil Nadu 4-2 while Orissa beat hosts Assam 2-1. 

The women's hockey competition saw powerhouses Jharkhand, led by India international Sumrai Tete, thrash Uttar Pradesh 6-0. 

But the giant killers in hockey today were Haryana who overwhelmed Madhya Pradesh 10-0 with Jasjeet and Surender Kaur striking three goals each. 

Delhi beat Assam 4-0 while Maharashtra pipped Orissa by a single goal. 

The first day of the Games showed that the organisers, despite their best efforts, were not fully equipped to provide results and scores from the various venues. 

They struggled to provide details about matches which finished hours ago and the official website of the Games was as good as non-functional. 

The organisers may have a tougher day tomorrow with as many as 19 disciplines lined up for the day. But hardly anyone seems to know the detailed schedule. 

Tomorrow's events include boxing, aquatics, volleyball, hockey, football, fencing, wrestling, gymnastics, kabaddi and shooting among others.

Assam defeat Maharashtra in football opener 

NET News Network 

Guwahati, Feb 9: Hosts Assam trounced Maharashtra 4-0 in the opening football match of the 33rd National Games at the Nehru Stadium here today. The winners led 2-0 at half time.

A packed Nehru Stadium cheered the home side as captain Sanjeeva Rongpi scored two goals, which came in the 12th minute and in the 85th minute. 

The other goal scorers were Ajit Singh (sixth minute) and Durga Boro (55th minute). 

Nagaland to sent 134 players for national games  

NET News Network 

Kohima, Feb 7: Nagaland Olympics Association (NOA) will be sending 126 participants for 9 disciplines in the forthcoming national games at Guwahati, Assam.

Nagaland Chef De Mission Abu Metha informred that the state will be fielding a full fledged team in 33 year history of national games.

Nagaland  has applied to participate in 9 disciplines – Athletics, Archery, Badminton, Boxing, Wushu, Sepaktawraw, Taekwondo, Weightlifting and Wrestling.

It may be mentioned that the 33rd national games will be played at Guwahati from February 9  till 18 at Guwahati, Assam.

"It would be an experience for our sports players to compete with their rest counterpart in different events at the national games", he stated.