Bikram Mohapatra clinched the Kelly S. Rao Trophy and Deelip Kumar the Secunderabad Club Radial rolling trophy for emerging overall winners without discards in the Standard and Radial categories respectively of the Laser sailing championships, which concluded at the Hussain Sagar here on Sunday.
If the full rig was dominated by sailors from the Mumbai outfit, most of whom found their feet in the sport with the EME Sailing Association (EMESA), the latter and Secunderabad based unit called the shots in the Radial section.
It was a tussle largely between Deelip and Sachin Singha, the second-named being in the forefront until Saturday.
In the deciding race for the Radial crown, Deelip rarely slipped from the top fleet, keeping an eye on arch rival Singha at almost every mark. Vir Menon of the Royal Madras Yacht Club dominated the first triangle but dropped down the order subsequently while Singha and Deelip were never too far separated from each other.
It was Singha to the fore when the frontline circled the gybe for the second time, a position he retained at the third leeward, by which time the leading trio included Deelip and AYN’s Mujahid Khan. The last-named gent powered his way forward for the gun, with Deelip hot on his heels and Singha crossing the finish line third.
In an event of this magnitude but held on a tight budget, the manpower mattered much. Major Anand Bhaskar from Pathankot, Punjab, made sure the launch operations went off without a hitch, never letting his vigil wane right through the four day championship, backed well by beach master Patil.
Sepoy Dhuruvasan Govindaraj and Havaldhar Rao, fresh products from a power boat handling course preceding the championship, proved more than equal to the task on hand.
The results:
Laser Standard: Race 11: 1. B. Mohapatra, 2. Gurjeet Singh, 3. Gitesh (all AYN). Race 12: 1. B. Mohapatra, 2. Ramesh Kumar (AYN), 3. Rakesh Yadav (AYN).
Laser Radial: Race 12: 1. Mujahid Khan (AYN), 2. Deelip Kumar (EMESA), 3. Sachin Singha (EMESA).
Laser 4.7: Race 11: 1. Tanishq Desai (YCH), 2. Dheer Singhi (RMYC), 3. Rishab Nayar (YCH). Race 12: 1. M. Koteshwar Rao (TSC), 2. Rishab Nayar (YCH), 3. Nanubala Shivaram (YCH).
Final standings: Laser Standard: 1. Mohapatra 25 points, 2. Gitesh 27, 3. Ramesh Kumar 38.
Laser Radial: 1. Deelip Kumar 20 points, 2. Singha 21, 3. Mujahid Khan 30.
Laser 4.7: 1. Singhi 21, 2. Nayar 40, 3. S. Jayalakshmi 52 (TNSA).
