Sailors gear up for water wars

Hyderabad: With the onset of monsoon, the Hussain Sagar lake at Hyderabad is all set to host the 34th Hyderabad Sailing week starting from July 2nd till July 7th, 2019. As of now, 175 entries were received so far from across the country, out of which 22 entries are from Telugu states.

Major General TSA Narayanan, Vice Commodore, EME Sailing Association said “Hyderabad is a popular destination for sailing in the country. The wind conditions in June-July are most favourable in the Hussain Sagar lake to hone the skills in boat handling and understanding wind shifts.”

Speaking to the Deccan Chronicle, an army officer, Captain Sonal Goel said that “It's a great opportunity and a wonderful platform for sports enthusiasts. Since from childhood I am a sports person, and when I joined the army, I got the opportunity to be a sailor. The only challenge in this sport is nature as its all about how we manage with the direction of the wind. And more and more women are coming forward to be sailors and it's a welcome move.”

This year, the event has been accredited as the Yachting Association of India (YAI) national ranking event where in the performance of the sailors would be ranked, which would give them opportunity for selection in National team.

The eco friendly sports is getting popular day by day and over two hundred sailors from all over the country are expected to participate in this years' event, where in Governor ESL Narasimhan would be the chief guest on the first day.