HYDERABAD: The five-day 65th All India Police Athletics Championship came to a celebratory halt on Wednesday, with CRPF emerging overall champions. Their delight was palpable as the contingent danced to the tune of various Punjabi numbers on the race track.
The results showed that the paramilitary forces were much superior when compared to the state police ones. “The central forces athletes train round the year for a tournament like this but we trained for not more than five months,” said Hazrat Ansari, marathon runner of the Jharkhand team. The team could not win a solitary medal.
Members of the BSF team, which finished second in the medal table, looked fully prepared from Day 1. When asked about training, Subhash Chandra, 3000m runner from CRPF, replied nonchalantly. “I do not go for active duty, I just prepare myself through training to compete at this level.”
Athletes from the J&K Police team also took part in the annual event. Although they could not lay their hands on a single medal, they looked relieved, away from their home state’s unrest, which has been ongoing for more than two months. “We could train only for 20 days as we were on duty due to the conflicts there,” said Luvjeet Singh, a constable, as he showed a long scar on his right leg. He claimed he got it during a clash with protesters.
Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao was present during the closing ceremony and said that he was happy that the police meet returned to the city after 56 years. Punjab Police finished third on the medal table.
vishal@newindianexpress.com