Kolkata, WEST BENGAL :

Rabindra Sarobar:

Two teenage rowers from Calcutta have ended a seven-year wait for Bengal by winning bronze in the junior national championships.

Sanglap Bose, 16, and Md Rahmat Ali, 15, finished third, missing out on silver by two seconds and gold by six.

The 38th edition of the event was held in Odisha’s Jagatpur between November 14 and 19.

The last time any male rower from Bengal made it to the podium in the junior nationals was in 2010 when Kapil Pincha won bronze in single sculls in Hyderabad in 2010.

“We finished first in the heats but couldn’t hold on to our nerves in the finals,” Bose, a Class XI student of Julien Day School, Bhowanipore, said.

The team completed the race in 3 minutes and 40 seconds. Telangana came first, followed by Madhya Pradesh.

Bose and Ali , a Class X student of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Ballygunge, practise at the Bengal Rowing Club.

“Junior nationals are more competitive than the sub-juniors. The 1km watercourse is a big challenge for our rowers because all watercourses in Calcutta are smaller,” Rajesh Agarwal, rowing captain, Bengal Rowing Club, said.

The teens had been preparing for the tournament since July. They practised early morning and in the evening.

In the pairs, two rowers have an oar each, compared to double sculls where each rower has two oars. “You need a certain level of physical strength to do well in pairs. The hours at the gym are as important as the practice sessions on water,” Agarwal said.

A low carbohydrate protein rich diet and a complete bar on junk food was also part of the preparations.

Ali stands at 5 feet 7 inches and weighs 52kg. Bose is 5’5″ and weighs 63kg.

“The immediate reaction after the race was that of disappointment. But we badly wanted a medal. We had aerated drinks after six months to celebrate the podium finish,” Ali said. His rowing career started at the club in 2014, a year after Bose had joined the club.

The two rowed together for the first time in 2016 and won gold in the state championships held at the club in January. They followed it up with gold in double sculls in the national sub-juniors in Chennai in June. “They keep pulling each other’s leg but on a boat they complement each other perfectly,” Agarwal said.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Home> Calcutta / by Debraj Mirta / December 02nd, 2017