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This is an archive article published on November 20, 1999

Two in a row for Naresh Yadav

NOVEMBER 19: Navy's Naresh Yadav had just one thought on his mind, going into the penultimate race of the Maersk National Enterprise sail...

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NOVEMBER 19: Navy’s Naresh Yadav had just one thought on his mind, going into the penultimate race of the Maersk National Enterprise sailing championship at Naval Sailing Club today. The luxury of not having to contest the seventh and final sector tomorrow.

He earned that in style, winning the National title for the second successive year, rendering the final race tomorrow a formality. Last year, he had fellow international Girdharilal Yadav for crew. This time, the Navy champion re-paired with long-time crew Jitendra Rami. Naresh flashed a thumbs up sign immediately after crossing the finish line. He confirmed later he will not start the last race (each team is allowed to drop the worst of seven races). He said, “The last race always makes me tense. I did not want to come back tomorrow.”

His start in the sixth this afternoon would not have given him any comfort. Riding Yacht No 52, the pair lay in seventh place after the second stretch, while their nearest challenger, overnight leaders Sanjeev Chauhan and Rajesh Dhulaji, had the lead. Naresh and Rami gradually inched ahead, advancing to fifth and fourth positions by the fourth and sixth stretches respectively.

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The 21-year-old Chauhan, competing in his fourth Nationals, had opened up a sizeable lead, going into the eighth and penultimate stretch, when the wind shifted. Even as the organisers altered the course a bit, tragedy struck the leaders in Yacht No 7. A down wind ensured that the trailing party caught up and worse, Naresh and Rami glided past at the turn. Yacht 52 finished first, while Mehul Ashar and Girish Rao (No 151) pushed Yacht 7 to third place. A gleeful Naresh said, “It was tense after the first stretch, and we decided to take one stride at a time.”

Chauhan looked a bit distraught, despite finishing runner-up and not needing to race tomorrow. This was also his best finish at the Nationals.

Tomorrow’s race has been reduced to a fight for the third place, between R Mahesh (38.7), Dilip Acharya (44.7), Gautam Dutta (46) and Mehul Ashar (40.7). Mahesh finished third and first in the fourth and fifth races this morning, but finished a poor ninth in the sixth after he was forced to reround following a premature start.

Results

Race 4: N Yadav & J Rami (0), Dilip Acharya & Binayak Majhi (3), R Mahesh & Girdhari Yadav (5.7), Gautam Dutta & Rajesh Chaudhari (8), Riddhi Jani & Rahul Kansara (10)

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Race 5: R Mahesh & G Yadav (0), N Yadav & J Rami (3), S Chauhan & R Dhulaji (5.7), Mehul Ashar & Girish Rao (8), G Dutta & R Chaudhari (10)

Race 6: N Yadav & J Rami (0), M Ashar & G Rao (3), S Chauhan & R Dhulaji (5.7), G Dutta & R Chaudhari (8), Vincent Peter & Rohan Patel (10)

Standings: 1 N Yadav & J Rami (14.4, champions); 2 S Chauhan & R Dhulaji (34.4, runner-up); 3 R Mahesh & G Yadav (38.7*); 4 Mehul Ashar & Girish Rao (40.7*); 5 Dilip Acharya & Binayak Majhi (44.7*); 6 Gautama Dutta & R Chaudhari (46*).

* The scores marked by asterisk signs are for five races, after ignoring the result of the worst race.

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