Updated on 1 January 2024 at 23:03 IST
Olympian Dipa Karmakar will return to the championships after a long absence of eight years as the three-day national gymnastics championships begin here from Tuesday.
Deepa Karmakar | Image: PTI
Olympian Dipa Karmakar will return to the championships after a long absence of eight years as the three-day national gymnastics championships begin here from Tuesday.
The three-day tournament will also witness Pranati Nayak, who is also an Olympian, as well as national gymnasts like Yogeshwar Singh, Rakesh Batra, Tapan Mohanty, Saif Tamboli and Gaurav Kumar at the Kalinga Stadium.
The state is hosting the championship after its success in organizing the national championship for artistic gymnastics for juniors recently.
“Deepa is participating in the national championship after almost eight years. Pranati Das, Pranati Nayak, Aruna Reddy and many other top athletes will also participate. So it is good,” Karmakar’s coach Bishweshwar Nandy said.
“I wasn’t able to come to the junior championships, but I would love to see the young athletes compete against these senior athletes.
“I loved the gymnastics center here, and I really hope it produces a strong team in the next two years for the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Olympics.” Pranati, who trains at Odisha AM/NS India High Performance Gymnastics Centre, expressed her happiness.
“I will be representing the Indian Railways and I am really excited that the National Senior Gymnastics Championships will be held at the same place where I train,” she said.
Up to 300 participants from all over the country are expected to participate in the tournament. PTI