Telangana sailor Preethi clinches gold in first Asian Games selection trials

Preethi, who paired with Sudanshu Shekhar won six races out of 12 and secured four positions to bag top honours.

Hyderabad: Telangana’s Preethi Kongara clinched gold in the 470 mixed class event of the first Asian Games selection trials and Senior Nationals held at Bombay Harbour, Mumbai.

Meanwhile another sailor Dharani Laveti won a bronze in the same category. Both sailors were paired with the men from the Indian Navy and shined in the tournament. Preethi, who paired with Sudanshu Shekhar won six races out of 12 and secured four positions to bag top honours. The team of Shraddha Verma and Ravindra Sharma of Navy were tied with Preethi and Sudanshu for the gold but they were thrashed them with six wins to emerge champions.

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Dharani and her partner Akshay scored 41 points to win the bronze with one second position and a couple of fourth places. Preethi and Dharani were currently pursuing their education in Marredpally Government College. This is the first time that Telangana had won two medals at the senior nationals. Preethi is a step closer to confirming her berth in the Indian squad for the upcoming at the Asian Games scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China in 2023.

Four girls from Telangana are in the top seven spots and dominating the national 470 mixed class event. “The girls are brimming with confidence and are all set to get to higher fitness levels for the second of three Asian Games Trials in January in the same venue when the winds are expected to be higher. The road to the Asian Games or Olympics is still very tough with two more selection trials and a lot of hard work,” said Suheim Sheikh, president of the Yacht Club at Hyderabad.

Final Points Tally: 1 Preethi Kongara/Sudanshu Shekhar 15; 2 Shraddha Verma/Ravindra Sharma 15; 3 Dharani Laveti/Akshay Kulhat 41; 4 Uma Chauhan/CHS Reddy 42.