Southern States - Andhra Pradesh-Hyderabad   

Floored they were, yet they sprint

By T. Lalith Singh

HYDERABAD Dec. 14. She stepped gingerly onto it. Then, the young girl removed her shoes and with barefoot felt the reddish brown synthetic track. "Hey, come here, it's so good,'' she hollered to her friends.

The new stadium complex at Gachibowli wore a colourful look as schoolchildren thronged in a large number to watch the events a day after the inauguration of the National Games.

They moved around each stadia and were clearly floored by the ambience.

For some boys, the track at the athletics stadium was irresistible. They glanced on either side and finding none watching them, began to sprint. Soon, more joined and the `sprint' continued.

Aquatics complex brimmed to the core with young spectators even as the divers made a splash. All the galleries were packed with students in their school uniforms. Every dive had them clapping and cheering. Louder were the cheers when State contestants positioned for the dives.

The children kept hopping from one place to another and in between relaxed on the lawns with their tiffin boxes.

Some brought in cameras and clicked pictures in front of the stadia and also the plush interiors. The huge mascot, Veera, in front of the main stadium turned out to be a hot favourite.

The indoor stadium where badminton was being played had spectators lining up. Around noon, hundreds of them were inside seated in comfortable chairs. They were wonderstruck with the lighting, the glistening floor and the courts.

One of the students wanted to know the play schedule of the star player, Gutta Jwala.

"I love to watch her in action,'' the girl said. The large fleet of buses pressed into service by the A.P. State Road Transport Corporation helped the spectators, mainly students from different schools, in reaching the stadium complex.

Same was the scene at Saroornagar Stadium where gymnastics was held in the morning as students and the general public patiently waited for their turn to enter the stadium to watch the gymnasts in action.

Confusion, however, marked the proceedings at Begumpet Hockey Stadium where the national game was being played on astro-turf. The main entrance being manned by security personnel equipped with metal detectors and enthusiasts were denied entry. There were none to inform that there was another gate meant for the spectators. Small things, but they do matter.

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• Floored they were, yet they sprint

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