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Local high jump champ Sahana Kumari Karnataka flag bearer at Championship meet


Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, April 29, 2015: DK local athelete, Sahana Kumari,  who holds the national record in high jump, will be the flag-bearer of the Karnataka team  and participants at the inauguration of the five-day Federation Cup National Senior Athletics Championship at the Mangala Stadium to start on April 30.


Sahana Kumari Karnataka flag bearer at Championship meetShana Kumari was enthusiastic and said that it is a proud moment to lead the team on the field where I have trained for long.  Sahana will be leading the 34-member team of the State that comprises medal aspirants Meghana Shetty (100 m, 100 m hurdles), B.G. Nagaraj (100 m sprint), Vishwabara (800 m), Abhishek Shetty (decathlon), Harshit (high jump), Arpita (400 m hurdles) and Shahi Jali (javelin).


While being confident to qualify for the Asian Athletics Championship, the 35-year-old Shana Kumari said she  expected  challenges from athletes of West Bengal and Kerala and added  she was aiming to cross 1.92 m set by her in the national athletics championship in Hyderabad in 2012.

Earlier, at a press conference, DK DC Adoor.B. Ibrahim said that there was good response to the championships with at least 800 athletes expected  to participate in the events.

Arrangements have been made for stay and other facilities for theseathletes and added  that as athletes had started to arrive in the city, boarding and lodging for them would be available from April 29 instead of April 30. As many as 300 rooms have been booked in 20 hotels for athletes and officials. Accommodation was being provided in Circuit House and guest houses of the New Mangalore Port Trust, National Institute of Technology-Karnataka and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited.

The KSRTC will run additional buses to various routes in the city from Mangala Stadium, he said. There will be an hour-long cultural programme every day in the evening from April 30 to May 4.  Minister for Youth Services and Sports K. Abhayachandra Jain presented to DC  Ibrahim  cheque for Rs. 50 lakh, the second instalment of the Rs. 1 crore grant by the State government. Institutions such as South Canara District Central Cooperative Bank, Mangalore Electricity Supply Company, and Karnataka Power Corporation Limited have given a total of Rs. 60 lakh for the championships it is said.