Jasvir Singh of AYN battled searing heat and a bout of food poisoning to win two races in the standard category of the Chennai Sailing Academy’s Laser National Championships here on Friday.
TNSA’s Rufus K. Patrick also claimed two races in the Laser Radial section. He started ahead and maintained the lead till the end. He was tested though by B.K. Rout of EMESA who took the final race in the category.
And RMYC’s Veer Menon consolidated his hold in the Laser 4.7 class. He finished first in two races while Vishnu Saravanan of CESC sailed well to clinch the day’s last race.
Emerging from the waters after a hard day’s work, Race Officer D. Paneer Selvam said the conditions underwent steep changes during the day. “From 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. the wind speed was around 12 knots. Then, it dropped to around six.”
Paneer Selvam, a former National champion in the standard and radial classes, said, “As the wind speed dropped, sailing became harder and the contestants had to use their skill. I though Rufus Patrick performed extremely well.”
“It was not easy. The tides were heavy and the waves big. The conditions were challenging for the sailors,” he added.
The results: Race No 6: Radial: 1. Rufus K. Patrick (TNSA), 2. Ramesh Kumar (AYN), 3. Amandeep Singh (AYN). 4.7: 1. Veer Menon (RMYC), 2. Vishnu Saravanan (CESC), 3. Ramya Saravanan (CESC).
Race No 7: Standard: 1. Jasvir Singh (AYN), 2. Muzahid Khan (AYN), 3. B. K. Rout (EMESA). Radial: 1. Ramesh Kumar, 2. Sharad Yadav (INWTC MB), 3. Praveen Prabhakar (TNSA). 4.7: 1. Veer Menon, 2. Shikhar Garg (NSS), 3. Dheer Singhi (RMYC).
Race No 8: Standard: 1. Jasvir, 2. Gurjeet Singh (AYN), 3. Gitesh (AYN). Radial: 1. Rufus Patrick, 2. Ramesh, 3. Praveen. 4.7: 1 Vishnu Saravanan, 2. Veer Menon, 3. Nicholas Patrick (TNSA).
Race No 9: Standard: B.K. Rout (EMESA), 2. Kuldip K. Pandey (AYN), 3. Jasvir.
