INDIA New England News
Nethra Kumanan (Photo: Olympics Channel)
Mussanah (Oman)– Chennai-based Nethra Kumanan created history, becoming the first Indian woman sailor to secure an Olympic quota place by taking an unassailable lead in the Laser Radial event in the Mussanah Open Championship on Wednesday.
Thanks to Kumanan’s massive 21-point lead over the chasing pack, all that the 22-year-old needs to do on Thursday is complete the Medal race without any incident.
On Wednesday, Kumanan was in sublime form, finishing Race 9 and 10 in first and second positions, respectively. The first Indian woman to win a sailing World Cup medal last year has 18 nett points, while her nearest rival, Hong Kong’s Stephanie Norton, is placed fourth with 41 points going into Thursday’s medal race.
Sailor Kumanan makes history, qualifies for Olympics prokerala.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from prokerala.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Olympic qualification still undecided at Mussanah Open Championship
By: Times News Service
Muscat: Competition is heating up at the Mussanah Open Championship where, at the midway point of the event, all classes remain incredibly close.
Conditions were perfect once again, with winds up to 15 knots and clear blue skies ensuring racing went down to the wire with no interruptions.
The 49er class is wide open, with yet another new leader on top of the rankings at the close of Day Three. Indian duo KC Ganapathy and Varun Thakkar ended the day in first place from Benjamin Talbot and Alex Burger of South Africa and the Chinese pairing of Hong Wei and Chao Xiang.