Features

Once known for his tantrums, seven-time world champion Pankaj Advani is calmer now, writes Indraneel Das.

Call it Hyderabad blues or what you will but two years after winning the Asia Cup, the India hockey team is waiting for promised land. Meanwhile, another Asia Cup came and went this year and India exited with a whimper.

 In this installment of Off Track Yana Bey replies to queries about scuba diving, bungee jumping and also sun protection for high altitude treks.

When in the deep seas, Akshay Malavi, a professional angler, always aims to make the big catch. The sport offers people like him just the kick they crave — in patiently drifting in deep rivers or cutting through freak sea waves until the game latches on to the hook and the wrestle begins, writes Aalap Deboor.

Every great journey starts with a single step. There could be no fitter description for marathon running. The sheer dedication required to even make it to the start line is formidable, reports Heath Matthews.

When warming up, jog clockwise around the track. This uses the muscles in the opposite manner to which you usually use them and helps strengthen the weaker side, speaks Heath Matthews.

It won't just be (a+b)2 but students of government schools in the district of Ahmedabad will have another subject that deals with alphabets and numbers in their annual exams next year — chess. Atreyo Mukhopadhyay reports.

Whenever I travel abroad, I try to experience a new adventure activity. During my last trip to Dubai, I decided to try out skydiving. The day I decided to attempt it,I couldn’t because the conditions were too windy to go skydiving, and I had to return the next day, Nasser Hussain tolds Deepti Patwardhan.

After four hours of pressing down on the throttle, my thumb is aching. The hands are numb from gripping the handlebar tightly, and the legs feel like jelly. But there’s no reprieve, the finish is still 10 km away, writes Indraneel Das.

Even as Gautam Gambhir received his Arjuna Award at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Saturday, a few kilometres away, three brothers, Saqib, Sufiyan and Ali Alam, were praying for Gambhir's continued success, writes Heena Zuni Pandit.

Parul Parmar takes small, laboured steps and speaks haltingly. Shy to the point of being self-effacing, it came as a surprise that the 36-year-old had won two badminton world titles in 2007, writes Ajai Masand.

Climbing is definitely an adventure, but it’s also a fun way to stay fit. Sonu Kumar Sherval, 24, an instructor at Gold’s Gym, Mumbai, which offers climbing as a workout, elaborates: “Climbing helps you work out various muscle groups in your arms and legs simultaneously, building stamina, improving grip and coordination.

Yana Bey replies to queries about the Directorate of Air Force Adventure Skydiving Course and also provides additional information in this piece.

We’re a couple aged 69 and 61 years. We started an exercise regimen 2 years ago after being diagnosed with stress-induced ischaemia (heart disease). We exercise six days a week and include 5 minutes of skipping and 5-10 minutes of jogging. Is it safe for us to skip and jog? Clinton Grobbelaar replies to this and other queries.