Impressed by India's performance at the Doha International Tournament, Aussie boxers want exchange programme with India, claims coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu
Mary Kom says being an active boxer and a Parliamentarian at the same time is no laughing matter as the twin jobs are exhausting and exhilarating in equal measure.
Mary Kom is just a couple of months shy of turning 36 but said she isn't going to slow down either at home or inside the ring.
As the curtain comes down on 2014, here's a look at the five best performances over the last 12 months. And, guess what? Two Indian sportsmen figure in the list!
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
Determined to keep the Olympic dream alive despite the long-standing administrative mess, a spirited Indian boxing team, featuring the likes of M C Mary Kom and Shiva Thapa, will take off on Monday night for the Asian Qualifiers in Qian'an City, China. Ten men and three women form the 13-strong team which will be in action from March 25. In the men's competition, only the top three boxers in each weight category will make the Olympic cut with the third spot decided via a box-off between the two bronze-medallists. In the women's draw, only the gold and silver medal winners will qualify for Rio de Janeiro. In the absence of a recognised federation, the Indians will once again compete under the flag of the International Boxing Association (AIBA). "It is going to be a very tough tournament because not many from the Asian region qualified during last year's World Championships. I am expecting around 30 countries and more than 250 boxers to be there at this event," national coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu told PTI ahead of the team's departure.
'What we have is the bill and the Act passed by Parliament.' 'And then there is a criterion of exclusion as to who will not be covered in EWS.' 'Beyond that, we have no clue where this idea came from.' 'And most importantly, why is it 10% reservation, and say why not 15% or 20%?'
Commonwealth Games gold medallist weightlifter Geeta Rani's confirmatory 'B' sample test has also returned positive for a banned substance and she is set to end her career in ignominy as she faces the prospect of a lengthy ban from the sport.
A fit-again Irfan Pathan feels that he is close to bowling at his best and it's just a matter of time before he is again back in contention for the seam bowling all-rounder's slot in the Indian cricket team that has been up for grabs for some time.
The proposals of six para-athletes, who are training in India and abroad ahead of the Asian Para Games that will take place between October 6 and 13 in Jakarta, were also cleared at the meeting.
Pankaj Advani has won a staggering eight world titles in the last three years and he continues to go about his business unassumingly, as if he is expected to lap up the trophies every season.
If indeed the issues involved between the government and RBI are of immense public interest, why not make public the arguments of both the government and the RBI, irrespective of the outcome of the process, says Tamal Bandyopadhyay.However, the Act is silent on what happens if the governor's views differ from that of the government. If Patel does not want to budge from his stance the government can either see merit in the Governor's arguments and decide against going ahead with its plan or overrule him. My guess is that the issues raised by the government need to be sorted out not at the November 19 board meeting but between the Governor and the government, says Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
'People taunted me, saying 'You are a woman, why are you wrestling?'
The jobless armies of youthful India are getting angrier and desperate, warns Shekhar Gupta.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday.
Brimming with pride at their daughter's historic achievement at the Rio Olympics, female wrestler Sakshi Malik's parents, on Thursday, urged all fathers to encourage their daughters, who wants to take up sports, saying the grappler's feat should set an example for all and sundry.
A tough draw will put their grit to test when the three-member Indian boxing team begins its Olympic campaign, aiming to lift the gloom that pervades the sport back home owing to the long-standing administrative mess.
'Mary just stopped talking to me. Maybe she did not like the fact that she was the gold medallist, but it was me (Sarita), not her, who was getting all the attention.'
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday.
Sports Minister Jitendra Singh responded to his senior colleague in the government Veerappa Moily's letter to him in connection with Jwala Gutta's ongoing impasse with the BAI, saying that he will examine her case and see how he can extend support to her.
Speaking exclusively to Aruneel Sadadekar/Rediff.com, the Haryana-based wrestler shed light on the latest reports of Asgarov testing positive and Sakshi Malik's bronze medal feat at the Rio Olympics.
In an unprecedented move, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, the country's highest sporting award, will be conferred on four athletes this year. The Sports Ministry announced on Monday that Olympic medalists P V Sindhu and Sakshi Malik will be honoured alongside trail-blazing gymnast Dipa Karmakar and ace shooter Jitu Rai.
OGQ has launched a crowd funding campaign to assist training and preparation of their potential medal winning athletes -- Irfan KT (Race Walking), Vikas Gowda (Discus Throw), Ayonika Paul and Pooja Ghatkar (both Rifle Shooting).
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday.
'Aggression is very important.' 'In the new scoring system the judges are more impressed if you land more punches and fight more aggressively.'
Shooters continued to deliver medals for India at the 17th Asian Games with the trio of Heena Siddhu, Rahi Sarnobat and Anisa Sayyed cliching a bronze in the women's 25m pistol event in Incheon on Monday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday
What a year Sania Mirza, Leander Paes, Saina Nehwal, Vijender Singh and Anirban Lahiri had!
I think it is best to abolish the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan -- they dilute the value of the Padma Shri, says RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal in an interview to Indulekha Aravind
Ace discus thrower Vikas Gowda clinched the first gold for India as the home team won three medals on the second day to make their presence felt in the 20th Asian Athletics Championships, in Pune on Thursday.
Chhagan Bhujbal, son of a vegetable vendor, rose through the political ranks by hard work, determination and political opportunism. Now past ghosts have come to haunt him.
Rediff.com presents India's Olympic wonder-women...
Using a sledgehammer to fix some ills can cut down a game at its peak, warns Shekhar Gupta.
Courage beyond Compare, as the name suggests, profiles Indian paralympic sports stars who despite physical disability, have fought the odds to become world class, champion athletes.
Talking extensively to Rediff.com's Laxmi Negi before flying out for the Asian Games, Mary gets candid about the life-changing Bollywood biopic Mary Kom, missing out on the Commonweath Games berth, her fight with the Sports Authority of India and what drives her to be the best inside the squared rope.
