As the golden cup of the ongoing Kerala State School Sports Meet was taken on a grand procession through the capital city, there were not many who doubted where the trophy would finally come to rest.
After all, the host district Thiruvananthapuram had displayed such a stellar performance from the very first day of the meet, especially in aquatics and game events.
Now, with less than one-tenth of the events to be complete, they were head and shoulders above the rest in the overall points table.
The ‘golden’ waters
The waters of Dr BR Ambedkar International Aquatic Complex, Pirappancode, were indeed a gold mine for the host district.
It earned a total of 649 points — a staggering lead of 500 points to the first runner-up Thrissur (149) — to emerge as the winners of the aquatics championship.
Of the total 103 competitions held, Thiruvananthapuram struck gold in 73. Notably, 10 of the 16 new meet records set belonged to teenagers from the district.
The performances of Aajushi Avantikaa S A of MVHSS Thundathil and Sreehari B of GVHSS Pirappancode were especially remarkable.
Together they set six records between them and amassed 30 points in the sub-junior girls and senior boys categorically, respectively.
The other notable performers were: Ebba Adila S and Vrinda R S (three gold medals each in junior girls category); Mongam Yagna Sai (three gold medals in junior boys), Vidhya Lekshmi R and Dhakshina Bijo P (three gold medals each in senior girls), and Kausthubnath J (three gold medals in senior boys). Of the top 10 performing schools in aquatics, eight were from the capital, including the top scoring MVHSS Thundathil.
Save for sub-junior boys category, the city also topped in all others at the sports meet.
Game on!
While aquatics ensured a safe margin for the capital, it is the performances in game events which contributed significantly towards the increase of said margin.
The players gained over 110 gold medals, ensuring that Thiruvananthapuram has a clear lead in four of the six categories (except sub-junior and senior girls).
The host district won gold in hockey, tennis, badminton and kho-kho in both the boys and girls categories.
Medals were also earned in boxing, judo, taekwondo and fencing. The performance of St Joseph’s HSS in gymnastics was notable, especially that of its two talents: Harigovind G R and Minhaj S Saj.
Between them, they won five gold and one silver medal in the event’s sub-junior and senior boys categories, respectively.
Domination
With 37 gold, 13 silver and 20 bronze medals, GV Raja Sports School (240 points) was the standout performer at the meet.
Overall
1. T’Puram 1,810 points (202 gold, 145 silver, 170 bronze)
2. Thrissur 870 points (90 gold, 54 silver, 107 bronze)
3. Kannur 843 points (81 gold, 76 silver, 85 bronze)
Games (*ongoing)
1. T’Puram - 1,107 points
2. Kannur - 798 points
3. Thrissur - 694 points
Athletics*
1. Malappuram - 187 points
2. Palakkad - 167 points
3. Kozhikode - 76 points
4. T’Puram - 54 points
5. Ernakulam - 46 points
Top schools of T’Puram
1. GV Raja Sports School - 256 points
2. MVHSS Thundathil - 118 points
3. St Joseph’s HSS - 115 points
4. GVHSS Pirappancode - 72 points
5. SAI T’Puram - 60 points
The story is reported by Aswin Asok Kumar for The New Indian Express
