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New Delhi: The Indian Equestrian Tent Pegging Team would be participating at the ITPF World Cup in Cairo, Egypt from 11 – 18 April, 2016.The Indian Team had stood as Champions at the World Cup Qualifiers in Abu Dhabi in December 2015 winning 5 Gold Medals and 2 Silver.
The World Cup is being held at Armed Forces Equestrian Grounds in Cairo. The other countries that have qualified for World Cup are South Africa, Britain, Australia, Iraq, UAE, Oman, Sudan, Jordan, Yemen and Egypt.
Brijesh Mathur, the Chief of Delegation, informed that the team would depart on 11th April and would do practice on 12th April on Horses selected by draw of lots for the team.
The team comprises of the Top 5 Riders selected on the basis of merit of the National Equestrian Tent Pegging Championship conducted by Equestrian Federation of India.
He added that the team has immense potential to win the World Cup for India for the first time.
“Our riders had given so much of sweat and blood to the sport that has its roots in the Indian sub-continent, so we will leave no stone unturned to prove our worth to the entire World,” he said.
The riders are Jaswinder Singh (BSF),Wangtham Lammaty (Assam Rifles),Pardeep Kumar (Haryana Police),Ajay Sawant (61 Cavalry) and Suresh Kumar (Haryana Police).
The team composition remains the same, informs the Secretary General, Col. R.K Swain. “The team members have proved their worth in the World Cup Qualifiers, so we have untouched the composition of the team. We are confident the team is going to do good, winning medals for India and hopefully would lift the World Cup. Col. Swain added that the team has been under-going rigorous Training under the National Coach Ahmad Afsar and Team CDE Col (Retd) S.S. Solanki.
The Training Camp is in progress at Army Equestrian Centre, Dhaula Kuan since its inception on 16th March.
The team is led by their Coach and Manager Ahmad Afsar, who mentored the team to World Cup Qualifiers Championship at Abu Dhabi. Besides, Col. S.S Solanki, a retired Army Official and former Secretary general of EFI would accompany the team as Official/CDE.
Jaswinder Singh is India’s Star Rider with maximum International Exposure and several International Championships and medals to his credit. Pardeep and Suresh have had three International Competitions outings while it is the third outing for Ajay Sawant and W. Lammaty.
When asked about the main tougher opponents, Ahmad Afsar said that all teams are equally good. For other India is a big threat with the kind of performance the team has given at the Abu Dhabi event. But, it is a fact that South Africa is the reigning World Champions, besides some tough teams being Oman and Sudan. Afsar said that if we keep our nerves cool, we will emerge triumphant.
The President EFI, Lt. Gen. R.V. Kanitkar wished the best for the team and to keep the tricolour high. General Kanitkar spoke highly of the support by Sports Authority of India (SAI) and Ministry of Sports & Youth Affairs (MYAS).(PTI)
