Amiya thanks sponsor before leaving for Jamaica
Bhubaneswar :
I am confident of bettering the Anil Kumar Prakash’s national 200 metres record of 20.73 seconds and making it to the Commonwealth and Asian Games later this year, said India’s number one sprint Odisha’s 21 year old Amiya Mallick in a press meet here at Kainga Stadium on Wednesday. Amiya is hoping to strike it big in the world of sprinting as he gears up to train under Olympic champion Usain Bolt’s coach. He will undergo a four-month stint in Kingston, Jamaica, under the watchful eyes of Glenn Mills at the Racers Track Club. “I am very lucky and excited to train under Glenn Mills for four months; he is also coaching Usain Bolt. It was a dream come true and every sprinter dreams to work under a coach who has worked with Bolt. “Basically, it was due to the efforts of the State Sports and Youth Services Department, Odisha Olympic Association, Tata Steel, KIIT, OMC and MCl for them this trip has been made possible,” said Amiya. “My aim is to do better in the 200 metres. When I go there I will work with the coaches to improve on the timing. I know that if I improve my time by even a fraction of a second I will qualify for the Asian Games and CWG. I am also looking to work on my fitness. I will talk to the coaches about how to improve my fitness and stamina,” he said. Amiya has a personal best of 10.50 seconds in the 100 meters and clocks 21.22s in the 200. He is hoping to better the timings after the stint with Mills, who also coached the Jamaican Olympic athletics team between 1987 and 2009 and played a major role in the nation\\’s rise as the sprinting superpower. He clocked 21.22 seconds to win the gold medal in the men’s 200m at the National Open Athletics Championships in Ranchi last September. The good showing enabled him secure the elusive training stint at the Racers Track Club in Jamaica. “After my good performances in Ranchi for a while I thought that joining the Racers Track Club would be impossible due to the lack of sponsorships. For a moment I thought that whether I will stay in my State or to join some nearby State to fulfill my dream. But Commissioner- cum- Secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra came forward and helped me a lot. After him the newly joined commissioner cum secretary of Sports and Youth Services Department Saswata Mishra’s support help me to fulfill my dream,” Amiya added. He leaves for Jamaica on January 12 in the hope of improving his timing and making it to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in July-August and Asiad in Incheon, South Korea, in September-October. He will get professional coaches in Jamaica, here in our sports Department we do all the work like at times we are physio, trainer and councilor. In Jamacia he has to interact with all specialised coaches. One more vital thing he will have a chance to practices with the athletes who are having better timings. Which will help him to improve his timings, said Amiya’s coach Nilamadav Deo. Emotional Deo wished Amiya to do better in future and gave him a cheque of Rs 50,000 as good luck. .
open Karate meet to be held in January
Bhubaneswar : All Odisha State Karate-Do Association is all set to organise 26th All Odisha Cadet, Junior and Senior Karate Championship at Sahid Nagar Indoor Hall here from January 14 to 16. Altogether 400 karatekas from 24 districts are expected to join in 31 different categories in the three-day-long meet. The State junior and sub-junior team would be selected from the championship. The team would participate in the National Sub-Junior and Junior National Champion schedule to held at Talkotra Stadium in New Delhi from January 24 to 26. As like every year, Utkal Karate School in association with Sukakai Karate-Do Union of India would host All India Open Karate Championship to be held at Sahid Nagar Indoor Hall from January 17 to 19. Total 400 karatekas from 10 States are expected to participate in 51 different events, informed Hari
Prasad Pattnaik.