Indian sport lacks grace
Dingko Singh almost did not come; PT Usha left the stage weeping, Ashish Ballal, the hockey hero, minced no words and let the Indian officials, who left him out of the national team after Hiroshima Asian games, have it. The final message: Indian sport has neither the foresight to spot champions nor the grace to deal to with them after they have been spotted.Games conclude
It was a ceremony fit for the royalty and pure visual delight. The Thais spared nothing to make the closing ceremony of the 13th Asian Games as memorable and emotional experience as one could, and it was with a heavy heart and thoughts of a hectic, action-packed fortnight flitting across that one bid goodbye this festival of sport.
Best in trouble
West Zone, chasing a victory target of 267 were in dire straits at 45 for four, after restricting Central to 203, despite a valiant century by Gagan Khoda, in their second innings on the penultimate day of the five-day Duleep Trophy final today.
Ghei wins
Gaurav Ghei, who married last week, leaves for his honeymoon tomorrow. But he won't only be taking his wife along but also fine memories of the Mahindra Invitational Golf Tournament which he clinched today.
Lee wins
South Korea's Lee Bong-Ju, who shot into prominence with a brilliant performance at the Rotterdam Marathon -- in which he clocked 2:07.44 -- this April re-established his position as Asia's premier marathon with a well-judged race to win the men's marathon in 2:12:32 for the last gold medal of the Asian Games.
Dope test
Two more athletes at the Bangkok Asian games tested positive for banned substances, making it four caught for doping at the 15-day sporting event which closed today, an offical of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) said today. A Kazakh athlete tested positive for cannabis and an athlete from the United Arab Emirates for an anabolic steroid at random tests conducted, Kyodo news agency reported here.
Match abandoned
Further frustration for everyone on Day Three of the first Test match. With persistent rain preventing any play, the match has been officially abandoned, which is the right decision. There is little point for everyone concerned to try and play the Test match over the remaining two days. There can be no winners and the players have too much to lose by playing in conditions that are likely to favour the bowlers and in a lacklustre atmosphere with few people watching the game.
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