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Indian-Origin Teenager Romina Gupta Captures Hearts after Gliding into US Gymnastics Squad

July 24, 2015

Kolkata, Jul 24: Hard work, dedication, and consistency can take you a long way. Even to the history books. And Romina Gupta, teenager of Indian-origin, knows exactly how.

RominaThe 17-year-old Romina's continued persistence and passion made her achieve her dreams and she is now a part of the US national team for acrobatic gymnastics. Born to Kolkata parents, Romina – who currently lives in the Silicon Valley, California – is now preparing for the World Championships in China next year.

And if she does manage to pick up a medal in China next year – which she is expected to – Romina will join the likes of Indian-Americans Mohini Bharadwaj (Silver for US in the 2004 Olympics), and Stephen Raj Bhavsar (bronze for US in the 2008 Olympics), in winning medals at the highest stage.

"Being named a US national team member has been a whirlwind experience for me. I know the road to the World Championships will be tough, but I will work my hardest to fulfill my dreams," Romina told the Times of India.

Romina is seen as one of the elite athletets already when it comes to acrobatic gymnastics. Her elegant displays of flair in the sport made her bag golds and silvers in three back-to-back US Nationals – 2013, 2014, and 2015, respectively.

Along with her teammates Anika Rix and Caitlynn Guzman, the Indian-origin girl competed in the USA gymnastics national championships in the most competitive 'elite' category at the at the Greensboro Coliseum in North Carolina.

The trio fought to make it to Team USA, and their wishes were fulfilled.

And there is no achievement possible without the strong support of family. The 17-year-old's mother is one proud woman today as she says that her daughter is working to creating an NGO that helps young girls get their much-needed motivation through gymnastics.

"Romina trains for four hours a day, seven days a week. She hopes to bring the sport to India some day. She is also working on creating an NGO that can help at-risk young girls use gymnastics to gain self-esteem," said Romina's mother, Reenita Gupta.

Romina also quickly quips, "I could not have done it without my family. I will not only represent the US, but Kolkata as well — and my family members who have inspired me to be what I am today."

A gymnast for the last 14 years, Romina started off as an artistic gymnast initially, but health issues forced her to give it up. She then concentrated on diving and track athletics, before zeroing in on acrobatic gymnastics.

Acrobatic gymnastics, unlike the more popular version, is a team event, where no particular equipment is used.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Sunday said the Women's IPL or the Challenger series, as it is better known, is "very much on", ending speculation about the parent body not having a plan for Harmanpreet Kaur and her team.

The men's IPL will be held between September 19 and November 8 or 10 (final date yet to be locked in) in the UAE due to the surge in Covid-19 cases in India. The women's IPL will also be fit in to the schedule, according to the BCCI chief.

"I can confirm to you that the women's IPL is very much on and we do have a plan in place for the national team also," Ganguly told PTI ahead of the IPL Governing Council meeting later on Sunday.

The BCCI president, who is awaiting a Supreme Court verdict on waiver of the cooling-off period to continue in the position, did not divulge details but another senior official privy to the development said that women's Challenger will be held during the last phase of IPL like last year.

"The women's Challenger series is likely to be held between November 1-10 and there could be a camp before that," the source said.

The former India captain also said that the centrally contracted women players will have a camp which has been delayed due to the prevailing situation in the country.

"We couldn't have exposed any of our cricketers -- be it male or female to health risk. It would have been dangerous," Ganguly said.

"The NCA also remained shut because of Covid-19. But we have a plan in place and we will have a camp for women, I can tell you that," he added.

The BCCI's cricket operations team is chalking up a schedule where Indian women are likely to have two full-fledged white-ball series against South Africa and the West Indies before playing the ODI World Cup in New Zealand. 

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Agencies
August 3,2020

Silverstone, Aug 2: Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton on Sunday won his seventh British Grand Prix title after a dramatic last-lap at the Silverstone Circuit.

Hamilton and teammate Valtteri Bottas were at the first and second spot respectively until tyre drama struck.

Second-placed man Bottas was the first to suffer as his tyre deflated on lap 50, resulting in 11th place finish. Hamilton also suffered a similar issue before the final few seconds of the race.

However, with Max Verstappen having opted to pit a few laps from the end to try and claim the fastest lap, Hamilton had enough time in hand to just cross the line first, five seconds ahead of Verstappen and the third-placed Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.

McLaren's Carlos Sainz had been set to finish fourth, but his own last lap tyre issue saw him eventually come home P13, allowing Renault's Daniel Ricciardo to claim fourth, following a late pass on the sister McLaren of Lando Norris.

Renault's Esteban Ocon finished sixth, having enjoyed a race-long battle with Lance Stroll's Racing Point, with Pierre Gasly having enjoyed a fine race to finish seventh for AlphaTauri.

Alex Albon finished eighth for Red Bull, having recovered from a lap 1 tussle with the Haas of Kevin Magnussen that saw him fall to last, while Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel rounded out the top 10, Vettel holding off a late charge form the recovering Mercedes of Bottas.

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Agencies
February 12,2020

Mumbai, Feb 12: Former Indian greats Kapil Dev and Mohammad Azharuddin have been left disappointed by the behaviour of the Under-19 team after the World Cup final where they were involved in an altercation with their Bangladeshi counterparts.

After Bangladesh won the final beating India by three wickets (via DLS) at the Senwes Park on Sunday, the players of the two teams were seen engaging in an exchange of words and even some pushing and shoving on the field.

"I would like to see the board (BCCI) take some strict action against the players to set an example. Cricket is not about abusing the opponent. I am sure there is enough reason for these youngsters to be dealt with firmly by BCCI," Kapil was quoted as saying by The Hindu.

"I welcome aggression, nothing wrong in it. But it has to be controlled aggression. You can't cross the line of decency in the name of being competitive. I would say it was unacceptable that youngsters put up such an obnoxious display on the cricket field," he added.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has sanctioned five players, including three from Bangladesh -- Towhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain and Rakibul Hasan --and two from India --Akash Singh and Ravi Bishnoi for the scuffle.

Azharuddin also reiterated what Kapil said, insisting that players need to be disciplined.

"I would take action against the errant Under 19 players, but I also want to know what role has the support staff played in educating these youngsters. Act now before it is too late. The players have to be disciplined," Azharuddin said.

Earlier, Bishan Singh Bedi has lashed out at the Priyam Garg-led team, saying their behaviour was disgusting and disgraceful.

"You bat, bowl and field badly�happens, but there's no excuse for behaving badly. The behaviour was disgusting and most disgraceful. The innocence of that age was not visible at all," Bedi told Mid Day.

Bedi, who represented India in 67 Tests and 10 ODIs, said the behaviour of the Bangladesh cricketers is not our problem.

"Look, what Bangladesh do is their problem, what our boys do is our problem. You could see that there was abusive language used," he said.

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