National rowing championship: Punjab rowers impress with smooth win

2000m doubles skull heat was easily dominated by the Sikh rowers, rowing together for first time

Punjab rowers Sachinpreet Singh and Jaitar Singh did their state proud and edged closer to a gold medal with a doubles win in the third quarterfinal race of the 37th senior national rowing championship at the Army rowing node at the College of Military Engineering, Dapoli, on Wednesday.

Sachinpreet Singh (left) and Jaitar Singh of Punjab after they won the 2000m heat at the national rowing championship at Army Rowing Node, College of Military Engineering, on Wednesday. (HT PHOTO)

In their first national-level tournament together, all eyes were on the Punjab duo, as despite their relative inexperience, they are touted by many to come back with medals. However, not letting the pressure get to them, they rowed their way to victory.

Since the 2000m race began, the paddlers from Punjab seemed to be the favourites to win ahead of their counterparts from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Once they reached the 1,250m mark, the Singh pairing easily had a double-digit lead over their opponents and it was all about maintaining their stamina until the very end, which they did effortlessly to qualify for the semis.

After the race, the pair spoke to Hindustan Times, explaining how the race was tougher than it appeared to the onlooker and also shared how their experience of competing in Pune has been for them.

Jaitar Singh then joined in the discussion and spoke about the competitiveness, not only in the race, but in the tournament, and how they’ll have to be at their best to win a medal here. “It was far from easy today as we knew a moment’s lapse could’ve taken away our spot in the semis. Having a look at the other races, we know we’re really going to have to ace it in order to get a medal.”