Sailing Success: Junior students Jhansipriya Laveti and Vaishnavi Veeravamsham represented India at the World Championships 2021 in the sub juniors category in Italy. This is a historic achievement for Telangana, with Jhansipriya ranking India’s no.1 and Vaishnavi as India’s no.2 sailor.
Two sisters from the state have been shortlisted to participate at the World Championships at Lake Riva Del Garda in Italy from July 1 to 12 but their appearance at the championship will depend on their performances at the Nationals to be held in Mumbai in May and more importantly on the money needed to participate in it. Jhansi Priya and Dharani Laveti are guaranteed a spot in the squad but they still need a bot pf pluck and luck to sail in Italy.
Jhansi (44th) and Dharani (59th) did extremely well at the Atlantic Week at Vigo in Spain in October in the open category and are therefore gunning for medal at the Nationals.
Making it a double joy for Telangana, four other girls are in the National ‘A’ squad and are all set to participate in the Asian & Oceanian Championships at Trincomalee in Sri Lanka from June 6 to 12 where the monsoon winds could be a smashing 18 knots.
However, as 2020 is an Olympic year, all funding from the Sports Ministry is focused on the Games to be held in July. And these girls have to spend from their own pockets to participate in the event. The Yacht Club of Hyderabad (YCH) has, however, said that no stones will be left unturned to ensure that all the girls participate and make full use of this opportunity to gain international exposure. An official said, “participation in large international fleets will only serve toward improving their boat handling, tactics, strategy and competitive edge while the girls have earned a spot through sheer dint of hard work.”
