Face2News/Chandigarh  

Chandigarh Veterans put up an outstanding display of Badminton at the All India Masters Badminton Ranking Tournament being held at Agra from 25th Jan to 1st Feb, bringing pride and recognition to the city with an impressive medal tally.

The Chandigarh contingent representing in age group of 35+, 40+,45+ and 50+ secured a total of 10 medals, including 4 Gold, 5 Silver, and 1 Bronze, showcasing their dedication, discipline, and sporting excellence at the national level. Badminton tournament was inaugurated by sporting icon Ms Saina Nehwal on 25th January. Around 700 entries came in this event across India. Pankaj Naithani playing in 2 events of 40+ ended up securing TOP podium position in both events. Deepak Saxena in 50+ age group won 1 Gold and 1 silver. Men doubles 50+ finals was a very thrilling encounter where Rajneesh Bhatia and Deepak Saxena could not convert 4 match points and had to settle for a silver medal.

Medal Winners:

Deepak Saxena – Gold (XD 50+). Deepak Saxena and Urvashi Thapa of Himachal defeated Parimelazhgab and Banu S of Karnatka 21-16, 21-11, Silver (MD 50+) . Deepak and Rajneesh lost a 3 game thriller to Parimelazhagan and Vikkas Sharma. They had four match points which they could not convert and lost 21-18, 21-23 and 12-21.

Pankaj Naithani – Gold (XD 40+) Pankaj partenered with Diva Arora to beat Raghavan and Aditi Rode in straight sets. He made it double Gold (MD 40+) by partnering with Manish Gupta and winning in 3 games from top seeds Jayan James and Rajesh Krishnan in 3 games 21-18,14-21, 21-10.

Sahil Katlaria won a Gold in(MS 35+) defeating Ravijot of Punjab.

Rajneesh Bhatia settled for a Silver medal (MD 50+)

Mala Gaba got 2 silver medals in Silver (WS 40+), Silver (WD 40+)

Nikhil Chari added to silver medal tally in 50+ Mens Singles.

Lavita Singla secured a Silver in (WD 50+) along with her partner Suchitra Misra of Delhi.

Geeta Mahajan won a Bronze in (WS 45+)

This remarkable achievement reflects the growing strength of Masters Badminton in Chandigarh and highlights the commitment of senior players who continue to inspire through performance and sportsmanship. Surinder Mahajan on behalf of the Chandigarh Badminton association congratulated all medal winners and appreciated their commitment towards the sport.

Col Raj Parmar added that he was sure that with all the support being given by Directorate of Sports, Chandigarh these talented players will be an inspiration to youngsters and will bring even greater achievements in upcoming national and international events. President of Chandigarh Badminton Association Mr Vijayendra Kumar (IAS) congratulated all the players and wished them good luck for upcoming championships.