F1: Further proof of India as a sports market

An image of the article as it appeared in Free Press Journal

The arrival of Formula 1 in India must be seen as another significant step towards establishing India firmly in the world’s sports market. It is a natural consequence of the opening up of our economy, its stability – and the enormous numbers of the young consumers of televised sport here – that India has been identified as an emerging sports market, as a sporting destination.

Look at how soccer teams from Europe have started investing their attention here – Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur are good examples. Consider how NBA has already set its foot on Indian soil by tying up with Mahindras; or, for that matter, look at how golf’s European PGA Tour has already expanded its base with a second-level Challenge Tour event in India. It was inevitable that Formula 1 President and CEO Bernie Ecclestone brought the sport to India sooner than later.

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A stint on AIR’s Sports Scan

It was a pleasure and privilege, being part of All India Radio’s Sports Scan on Tuesday, October 11, 2011. There were a lot of sporting events that came up for discussion.

The National Boxing Championship for Women in Bhopal came up first since MC Mary Kom’s clash with defending champion Sarita Devi in the 51kg class will hold enormous interest, given that the five-time world champion in the 46kg class, is eyeing a berth in the Indian team for the Olympic Games in London next year.

The show’s host, Mukesh Kumar, and I then discussed India’s showing in the Asian Age-Group Swimming Championship. I made a pitch for the Indians to train overseas rather than restrict themselves to camps in India with Indian coaches.

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Boxing Federation does well to keep media informed

Vikas Krishan (Photo courtesy: Indian Amateur Boxing Federation)

The sepia tint is strong but it does not take much for the image of an up and coming cricketer riding a bicycle to a newspaper office in Secunderabad to give the sports editors a copy of his photograph for use in the next morning’s edition comes through the sub-conscious. The montage that is playing on my mind is from the 70s when scoring a century or taking five wickets in the Hyderabad cricket league could enhance the chances of one’s photograph appearing in the newspaper.

This scene kept replaying in my mind’s eye when four Indian boxers – L Devendro Singh, Manoj Kumar, Jai Bhagwan and Vikas Krishan – won their pre-quarterfinals bouts in the AIBA World Championship in Baku, Azebaijan. And from the comfort of my home in Delhi, I got to hear Devendro and Manoj Kumar share their joy with boxing fans in India. This was thanks to the efforts of the Indian Amateur Boxing Federation in sending journalists an audio file.

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A Visionary & a Gentleman

N Ganesan

Jaisimha and Pataudi (Image courtesy: www.mljaisimha.com)

A titan of Indian cricket – and a wonderful human being – is no more. A little over a dozen years after his friend ML Jaisimha died of lung cancer, Pataudi – and I have not been able to bring myself to call him Mansur Ali Khan – has fallen to a lung infection. I was hoping that he would pull through, like he did on the cricket field where he battled adversity without flinching.

It was a privilege watching him play the Moin-ud-Dowla Gold Cup in my hometown of Hyderabad for an assortment of teams over a number of years, the Hyderabad side in the Ranji Trophy in places like Kothagudem and Sirpur-Kagaznagar, and the South Zone squad.

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Rajvirdhan gets nose ahead in drivers’ standings

V Rajvirdhan cruises to second victory in as many days at Sriperumbudur on Sunday

V Rajvirdhan (Coimbatore) wrested the lead in the drivers’ standings in the Indian Touring Cars classes after scoring a flawless double victory in the fourth round of the JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship at the MMST Track in Sriperumbudur near here today.

The 27-year-old Rajvirdhan (Prime Racing) made capital of a good start to claim his third victory of the season to rise to the lead in the Indian Touring Cars class. He was given a shot in the arm when a combination of fever and an underprepared car kept championship leader TR Radha Selvarajan (Rad Racing) away from the start line.

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Walawalkar, Rajvirdhan close in on leaders

Ameya Walawalkar (No. 1) leads from S Narendran and Sandeep Kumar

Mumbai’s Ameya Walawalkar (Mars Racing) and Coimbatore’s V Rajvirdhan (Prime Racing) bridged gaps with championship leaders by scoring start-to-finish victories in the Formula LGB Swift and Indian Touring Cars classes in the fourth round of the JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship at the MMST Track in Sriperumbudur today.

Late in the evening, Chennai’s Feroz Khan (HCZ Racing) defied the start-to-finish script by rising from third place on the Indian Junior Touring Cars grid to take the chequered flag ahead of pole sitter B Balavijay (MotoRev India) and championship leader Diljith Shaji (LCT Sigaram Sports). By finishing second, Shaji ensured that he held a 25-point lead over Balavijay.

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