Churchill hold EB; Aizawl down Chennai
Brothers held East Bengal to a 1-1 draw in the opening match of the Federation Cup football tournament’s Group A match at the Barabati Stadium on Sunday.
East Bengal took the lead in the 65th minute through Haitian international Wedson Anselme while Liberian Ansumana Kromah found the equaliser for Churchill Brothers in the 80th minute.
Later, I-league champions Aizawl FC came from two goals down to score a 3-2 win over Chennai City FC.
First half goals by Charles de Souza (13’) and Edwin Sydney (39’) left the champions of India reeling, but an inspired secondhalf performance, including strikes from Al-amna (53’) and L Ralte (62’, 81’), put Aizawl at the top of Group A with three points in their kitty.
DEVENDER QUALIFIES FOR WORLD C’SHIPS
Devender Singh of Services joined world junior champion Neerajchopra by becoming the second Indian to meet the javelin qualifying mark for the August world athletics championships on Sunday.
Devender won the Indian Grand Prix first leg with a throw of 84.57m, meeting the qualifying mark of 83m.
Neeraj Chopra, 19, qualified on April 28 when he won silver in the second leg of the Asian Grand Prix in Jianxing, China.
Chopra had won the 2016 World U-20 championships in Poland with a throw of 86.48m, a junior world mark as well as the Indian national record. get within sniffing distance of a win. But Amalraj showed that he is made of sterner stuff as he pulled off a 6-11, 6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 8-11, 11-9, 11-9 win.
The Indian now runs in to Brazil’s Hugo Calderano who sidelined his countryman Gustavo Tsuboi 11-3, 11-6, 6-11, 11-6, 11-8.
KAVINDER, MANOJ, SATISH MAKE THE CUT
Third seed Satish Kumar (+91kg), sixth seed Manoj Kumar (69kg) and Kavinder Singh Bisht (52kg) qualified for the World Championships after winning their respective boxoffs at the Asian Championships here on Sunday.
With the trio’s victory, India now have seven boxers confirmed for the World Championships. The others to have qualified are the bronze medal winning duo of Vikas Krishan (75kg) and Amit Phangal (49kg) along with silver-medallists Shiva Thapa (60kg) and Sumit Sangwan (91kg).
SIDHU SHOOTS BRONZE AT PLZEN C’SHIP
Sidhu settled for the bronze medal in the women’s 10m air pistol category of the 48th Grand Prix of Liberation Plzen Shooting Championships on Sunday.
Heena shot 218.8 in the eightwoman final to claim bronze, in an event won by Rio Olympic gold and bronze medallist Anna Korakaki of Greece.
Germany’s rising women’s pistol star 21-year old Michelle Skeries, competing in her rookie senior year and having already won a World Cup bronze in New Delhi this year, came second with a finals score of 237.8.
India’s Shri Nivetha Paramanantham also qualified for the finals but finished fourth behind Heena with a finals score