NE SPORTS BUREAU
SURAT, AUG 22
Sachin Sharma from Surat emerged the winner in the 22-km individual time trial road cycling race organised on the Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar road on Independence Day, last Sunday, which saw the participation of cyclists from across the state, says the organiser.
Sachin Sharma won the men’s race with a big margin of over a minute over second-placed Parth Karkar, adding another feather to his cap. He has been training for five years and won the gold at the national championship 2019, a silver at Khelo India 2019, and a bronze at the National Championship 2020.
“I participated in the Ahmedabad race as a training racer as per the schedule planned by my coach Samir Shingala, who has been coaching me for the last four years, and has contributed to the tremendous change in my riding and overall performance,” says Sachin, who aspires to compete at the international level.
Samir Shingala of Surat-based Sam’s Performance Coaching, a world-class bicycle racing training centre that aims to work not only on the physical health of riders but also on their mental health to enable them to perform at the optimal level.
Manav Chandvani was placed third in the road cycling race.
Arpita Pandya won the women’s road cycling race, while Dhara Patel and Kinjal Patel were second and third. Incidentally, Dhara Patel is also undergoing coaching at Sam’s Performance Coaching.
“I was second in the individual time trial and am happy with my performance. Since I started coaching under Samir sir, I have noticed a big change and improvement in my skills and performance. Scientific approach towards training can be wonders for an individual, and I have experienced this in the last couple of years,” says Dhara, who won many medals at the national level in inline skating before switching to cycling.
In the triathlon category, Chaksu Ahuja, Raghvendrasinh Jhala, and Jagat Patel finished first, second, and third respectively in the men’s event, while Purvi Shah finished first in the women’s triathlon.
