THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Eight thrilling days of action came to a close with hosts Thiruvananthapuram being crowned champions of the 67th Kerala School Sports Meet on Tuesday.
The meet saw record-breaking performances, tight competitions across categories and emotional highs that carried the spirit of sportsmanship.
A total of 17 new records in athletics and 17 in aquatics made this edition the one with the most record-breaking events.
Spread across 12 venues, the event hosted nearly 9,000 competitions in close to 40 events.
The meet went ahead as scheduled despite rain delays and venue changes, with some events like tug of war shifting thrice before finding ground.
Hosts Thiruvananthapuram led from the first day, kept its dominance till the end and won the race for the Golden Cup.
The meet also introduced new events, including kalaripayattu, yoga and fencing, with good participation witnessed from across the state.
For the second time, inclusive events were held, but special educators pointed out that many venues still lacked ramps and basic facilities for the participants.
Two new events, Cricket and Bocce were introduced for children with disabilities.
Another highlight was the participation of female students from Gulf countries.
The 15th district earned one silver medal and three points overall. The opening day saw in the pool as four new records were set. Aquatic events were the first to complete crowning the capital district.
Thiruvananthapuram also won the games section. Track and field events were no less thrilling. Malappuram secured the athletics lead.
J Nivedkrishna of Palakkad and Adithya Aji of Malappuram finished as the fastest runners in senior 100m categories.
Deva Priya Shaibu of Idukki broke a 1987 record in sub-junior girls’ 100m by clocking 12.69 seconds.
Athul T M of Alappuzha smashed a 1988 record in junior boys’ 100m, finishing in 10.81 seconds. One of the most emotional moments came from Kozhikode’s Devananda V Biju of St Joseph HSS, who won the junior girls’ 200m while recovering from appendicitis.
She broke the eight-year-old record with a timing of 24.96 seconds. General Education Minister V Sivankutty announced that a new house would be built for her family.
The government will facilitate building of new houses for 50 participants, he said. More records fell in hurdles and discus throw events. A grand victory procession was held in the city to welcome the Chief Minister’s Cup, a 117.5-sovereign gold trophy for the overall champs, for the first time in the event’s history.
Despite a few age-related controversies, where questions were raised about a participant’s eligibility in certain categories and a probe is on, the meet stood out for the promise of a brighter sporting future.
Roll of honour
Overall
Champions: T’Puram (1,825 points)
1st runner-up: Thrissur (892 points)
2nd runner-up: Kannur (859 points)
Best school (Athletics)
1. Ideal EHSS, Kadakassery (Malappuram): 78 points
2. VMHS, Vadavannur (Palakkad): 58 points
3. Navamukunda HSS, Thirunavaya (Malappuram): 57 points
Best sports school (Athletics)
1. GV Raja Sports School, T’Puram: 57 points
2. CSH Wayanad & SAI Kollam: 8 points
3. MA College Sports Hostel, Keerampara & SAI Thalassery: 5 points
Toppers
Athletics: Malappuram (247 points)
Games: T’Puram (1,107 points)
Aquatics: T’Puram (649 points)
