Six-member Indian team selected for Artistic Gymnastics World C’ship

The team includes Ashish Kumar, the Asian Games medallist. Pranati Nayak will lead the Indian women’s team.

Ashish Kumar, the 2010 Asian Games medallist, will participate in the Championship.

A six-member team was picked on Monday to represent India at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championship to be held at Stuttgart, Germany from October 4 to 13.

Besides Ashish Kumar (Railways), who had won bronze at the 2010 Asian Games, the Indian men’s team will also have Yogeshwar Singh (SSCB) and Aditya Singh Rana (Railways). Pranati Nayak, who had won a bronze in the vault event at the Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Mongolia earlier this year, will lead the Indian women’s team, which also comprises Pranati Das and Aruna Budda Reddy, who had claimed bronze at 2018 Gymnastics World Cup.

A total of 18 men and 12 women gymnasts participated at the selection trials conducted by the selection committee at the Indira Gandhi stadium here on Monday. The committee comprised Onmar Singh (IOA representative), Gymnastic Federation of India (GFI) president Narender Singh Mor, GFI secretary Kulwinder Singh, Kalpana Debnath (representing TEAMS Division, SAI), IS Pabla (SAI project officer for Gymnastics) and G. S. Bawa (Coordinator).

Related | Sports Ministry writes to FIG to allow IOA to select gymnasts

Earlier this month, a two-day open selection trials to select the team for the World Championships was postponed after the Sports Authority of India (SAI) requested the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to conduct the trials. The Sports Ministry last week wrote to the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) to allow the committee, headed by IOA, to select the team for the tournament, which is also an Olympic qualifier.

However, FIG Deputy Secretary General Nicolas Buompane made it clear that only the Gymnastic Federation of India (GFI) has the right to select the team. “The decision of who is part of the delegation at our World Championships and the right to register athletes for these events is the only prerogative of our member,” Nicolas said in his letter to the Ministry.

“As long as GFI is in good standing with us, we can and shall therefore only accept registrations duly signed by their president or secretary general we recognise. We are confident that they will organise fair qualifications respecting their rules and statues,” the letter said.