CHENNAI: Collegian Johann Emmanuel from Chennai scripted history by becoming the first Indian to win all three races in the 300 SSP category of the Qatar Superbike and Superstock Championship over the Nov 16-17 weekend at the iconic Lusail International Circuit in Doha, Qatar.
His elder brother 20-year-old Geoffrey Emmanuel, supported by Ceat Tyres, Sidvin, and the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT), brought more cheer to the family by finishing on the podium in all three races in the 600cc category. It is the first instance of Indian brothers finishing on the podium in all the races they participated in the same championship, though in different categories.
Astride a Kawasaki Ninja 300, 18-year-old Johann, a 1st-year Visual Communication student at the Madras Christian College, made a significant impact by winning all three races on debut in his category. Though short on seat time, Johann qualified P2 which he converted into victory. Later, in Race-2, the youngster posted a win by a 14-second margin. In Race-3, it was a lights-to-flag win for Johann as he completed a hat-trick.
Meanwhile, Geoffrey, a 3rd year BCA student at the Madras Christian College and iding a Kawasaki ZX6r, earned three podium finishes in as many races. He finished third in Race-1 and Race-2 before faring better in Race-3 by finishing second.
Pavan bowl Kerala to victory
Left-arm medium pacer Pavan Raj’s 7/50 (match haul 13 for 99) paved the way for Kerala to beat Tamil Nadu by 199 runs on the final day of the Col CK Nayudu Trophy men’s U23 Elite A group match played in Wayanad, Kerala. Brief scores: Kerala 337 & 248 for 8 decl. in 60 ovs (Varun Nayanar 112, Rohan Nair 58, P Vignesh 4/87) bt Tamil Nadu 228 & 158 in 46.5 ovs (R Vimal Khumar 37, Sunny Sandhu 31, Pavan Raj 7/50).
Ilamparthi bags title
International Master AR Ilamparthi of Chengalpattu district scored 7.5 points at the end of the 8th and final round to win the Singh’s Gambit International Fide Rated chess tournament held at Guru Nanak college, Velachery, Chennai. IM R Balasubramanian, IM C Praveenkumar of ICF, GM RR Laxman of ICF and AGM Vignesh of TN scored seven points each and they finished 2nd to 5th place respectively based on their tie-break scores.