The Hindu : Sport : St. Joseph’s felicitates Gayathri

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St. Joseph’s felicitates Gayathri

Special Correspondent

Chennai: Incessant rain proved no deterrent to the 3000-odd students who assembled to greet G. Gayathri, the triple medallist in the recent Commonwealth Youth Games, at St. Joseph’s College of Engineering on Tuesday.

A first year student in M.Sc. Computer Technology, Gayathri, anchored a gold in the 4x100 relay and cornered two silver medals, one each in triple jump and in her favourite event, the 100 hurdles.

Speakers headed by the President of the Tamil Nadu Athletics Association, Walter Dawaram, hailed Gayathri’s showing.

For those observing the rise in stature of Gayathri, the performances at the CYG last week come as no surprise. In all the previous competitions, both domestic and international, Gayathri had exhibited marked improvement.

The unexpected bonus was the silver in the triple jump, a discipline which she took to only five months ago. Memorable however for the athlete was the last lap in the short relay. “I was in third place when I got the baton,” said Gayathri, leaving one to imagine the burst she must have made to hit the tape.

Describing Gayathri’s showing as “unique,” Mr. Dawaram reckoned that winning the gold, or silver, in the Commonwealth arena was more difficult in athletics than at the Asian level. He pointed out that more than 70 countries with leaders like Australia, Canada, South Africa and England were in the fray adding to the intensity of competitions.

Dawaram’s compliment

Mr. Dawaram complimented St. Joseph’s College for paying so much attention to sports, particularly to the invaluable role played by Dr. Babu Manoharan.

Dr. Thirumalaiswamy, Vice-Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Sports and Physical Education University, underscored the need to make sport as a compulsory subject.

He also urged the government to recognise the services rendered in the promotion of sport by institutions like St. Joseph’s. He commended the steps taken by China over the decade-and-a-half to build the nation’s talent and said it reflected in the Beijing Olympics.

Dr. Babu Manoharan, who welcomed the gathering, said he was proud to have a student like Gayathri in the college. He presented a cheque for Rs. 1 lakh as a reward for her achievement.

Shiny Wilson, former Olympian, and Neelasivalingswamy, Secretary, Tamil Nadu Athletics Association, also felicitated Gayathri. Dr. Nagarajan, coach, proposed a vote of thanks.

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