Business Wire IndiaDay-4 and the final day the Krishnapatnam – India International Regatta 2017 held by the Yachting Association of India, Navayuga Sailing Academy and Yachting Association of Andhra Pradesh along with Tamil Nadu Sailing Association concluded amid enthusiastic participation by sailors from all over India and several other countries, at Krishnapatnam Port.
The medal race for the top 10 sailors in the individual fleets was a much-awaited race. The breezy winds created a perfect setting for the participants to show their talent and stamina to compete with one another. The gun sounded, and the top ten competitors were off, fighting for the top position. Close to the top mark, Neelanand from India was ahead of the fleet. But his inability to handle the current effectively saw him slip down to 4 position. Ramadin Tito from Indonesia capitalised on this and from there on lead the fleet to score an easy win, and the overall championship in this category. By the time the Laser 4.7 race begun, the wind had picked up. So, the course was made longer with 3 upwind legs. By the time the 3 upwind leg was in progress, it looked like anybody's race. But in the last downwind leg, Gregory Wardojo of Indonesia snatched the race away from everyone else, and went on to an easy victory in the race. However, due to the string of podium finishes, the recent National Champion of this Open class Harshita Tomar of India took the championship in this category. Anil Yendluri, Chief Executive Officer, Krishnapatnam port, said "There was a good response to the event that was organised here for the first time here, and that it would be conducted in the coming years too in a grand manner so as to give a fillip to the sport." In the Olympic class Laser Radial category, even though the top 3 positions were all but finalised, the race was the most anticipated of the day. The fastest category of the IIR was sure to see some fast-paced action and this race was the highlight of the day. In a race that was decided from the word go, Indian lad Vishnu Saravanan sailed spectacularly to gain an impressive lead over his competition. With almost a leg lead, the Junior Commissioned Officer of the army flew over the finish line to take both the race as well as the overall championship in this category. When asked about the race, Thomas Chaix, the Irish and Canadian coach had this to say. "Tayte read the wind conditions and tide well. But at 63kgs, he had little chance at winning against a heavier and more muscular sailor. Vishnu is a great sailor who has sailed consistently well in this event after claiming National Championship recently." Among the Girls, Ramya Saravanan re-affirmed her recent National championship title and easily won the Olympic class Laser Radial race. The Krishnapatnam port area is found to have a high potential for turning into a yachting hub on the east coast for sailors and those getting trained to take part in national and international events. Akhileshwar Reddy and Tanishka Gaur of Andhra Pradesh bagged the Most Promising Yachtsman awards in the Optimist Green category. The organisers were planning to make the present location a permanent venue for holding the national and international sailing competitions under the Navayuga Sailing Academy aiming at developing the young sailors from the region. The more experienced Sailing organisations of India like TNSA, AYN, NSS Bhopal, INWTC etc found the Krishnapatnam sailing conditions to be the best in the country similar to the Olympic conditions and were planning to practice for upcoming Asian Games 2018 and 2020 Olympics at Krishnapatnam. IIR 2017 Final Results: Most Promising Yachtsman Award
- Akhileshwar Reddy (Boys) – Optimist Green
- Tanishka Gaur (Girls) – Optimist Green
Laser Radial Boys Gold – Vishnu Saravanan, India – 17 points Silver – Tayte Stefaniuk, Canada – 27 points Bronze – Govind Bairagi, India – 35 points Laser Radial Girls Gold – Ramya Saravanan, India – 55 points Silver – Jayalakshmi S, India – 75 points Bronze – Ambigavalli Grant, Malaysia – 135 points Laser 4.7 Open Gold – Harshita Tomar, India – 25 points Silver – Samsuardi, Indonesia – 44 points Bronze – Chitresh, India – 55 points
Gold – Ananya Chouhan & Vishnu Sujeesh, India – 9 points Silver – Barath S & Abhishek Pandey, India – 21 points Bronze – Punit Kumar Sahoo & Amit Sahoo, India – 24 points Optimist Boys Gold – Ramadin Tito, Indonesia – 20 points Silver – Alexander Baudin, Sweden – 46 points Bronze – Erra Durga Prasad, India – 59 points Optimist Girls Gold – Uma Chouhan, India – 60 points Silver – Ritika Dangi, India – 193 points Bronze – Elsa Aronsson, Sweden – 214 points Optimist (Green) Boys Gold – Bethamalla Sachin, India – 15 points Silver – Padadila Vishwanath, India – 27 points Bronze – Aaryan Anand, India – 39 points Optimist (Green) Girls Gold – Veera Vamsham Vaishnavi, India – 44 points Silver – Maseeha Firdous, India – 85 points Bronze – Sonu Mohammad, India – 97 points
Source: Businesswire