Mumbai teenagers Kshitij, Neha, Sasha for World Speed Skating meet

Mumbai, July 9 (UNI) Teenage skating exponents Kshitij Hunari, Neha Kotian and Sasha Dabholkar of Mumbai have qualified to represent India in the forthcoming World Speed Skating Championship that will be held in Cali, Colombia, from August 17 to 25.

Embarking on their maiden journey to the World Championship, Kshitij of Sion-Chunabhatti, Neha of Andheri and Sasha of Bandra are among 44 skaters from all over the country who have made it to the Indian squad following a three-week selection trial conducted by the Roller Skating Federation of India (RSFI), that was held in Ludhiana, Punjab from June 11 to 29.

Kshitij, a national silver medalist and Sasha, a national silver and bronze medalist, will feature in the Above 16 category, while Neha, also a national silver and bronze medalist, will feature in the Above 14 category.

The trio's training at the Ludhiana camp included a rigorous regimen of skating on the road from 0500 hrs to 0900 hrs and rink sessions in the evening from 1800 hrs to 2000 hrs at the banked track.

''We will be competing with the best in the world. That includes skaters from the US, Korea and hosts Colombia, among the 50 nations participating in the championship,'' revealed Kshitij, who waited 12 years for his first international meet.

''The world record in the marathon is 49 minutes, while the fastest Indian clocked 1 hr 17 minutes in the Ludhiana trials.

That's the big difference. But we will try to do our best and gain maximum exposure,'' added Kshitij, who will feature in the marathon.

Neha, a standard X student of Bombay Cambridge School, Andheri and Sasha, an FYBA student of National College, Bandra have the added advantage of training with world renowned coach Christophe Audoir and world No. 2 Natalie Barbotin when the French duo were in Mumbai in December last year.

''It was a brilliant opportunity to learn the tricks of the trade from Christophe and Natalie, two of the best in the business. They certainly meant business and made a big difference. They immediately got rid of our flaws and showed us the appropriate techniques, which was so important,'' explained Sasha. ''Now I have no fear. Instead I have grown in confidence. In addition, I already have been to the World Open Championship in Ostend, Belgium so I am going to make the best of this opportunity.'' Said Neha: ''I was picking up injuries due to wrong techniques and I couldn't do long distance skating. But after working out with Christophe and Natalie I corrected my flaws. I am more confident now.'' ''There is a vast difference between the skaters from the top nations and us. Their training involves more of exercising and less of skating. But at the same time I would like to emphasise that there is a sharp improvement in skating in India,'' added Kshitij.

The skaters will later join the RSFI's conditioning camp, which will be held from August 1 to 13 at Faridabad, before leaving for Colombia on August 15.

UNI