Hyderabad to host top athletes

Hyderabad: It is there final chance and around 645 contenders are out to seize the opportunity to jump onto the Rio bandwagon to have a shot at Olympic glory.

GMC Balayogi Stadium at Gachibowli will see last-minute gasp efforts when the five-day 56th National inter-state senior athletics championship gets going on Tuesday. Its importance is in the fact that it is the final qualifying outing for athletes who wish to make it Rio.

In order to boost its relay participation, Sri Lanka has agreed to field entries, according to Tournament Director Prof K Ranga Rao here on Sunday.

We urged all SAARC members to participate in the championship because for the relay qualification two countries have to participate. Sri Lanka agreed. Moreover, this will be mutually beneficial,” he said.

“Athletes who have qualified for one discipline are also participating because they are gunning for other events as well. Moreover, this outing will be a worthwhile conditioning for the athletes,” he said.

Sprinter Amiya Kumar Mallick, distance runners G Lakshmanan and L Suriya, triple jumpers Mayookha Johny and Renjith Maheswary, who missed in the earlier trials are aiming to qualify for here” he added.Sabyasachi Ghosh, President, TAA gave a detailed account of the hopefuls.

Sports Minister TP Padma Rao Goud will inaugurate the championship while city Mayor Bonthu Rammohan will grace the occasion.