Kambala racer Gowda’s trial date yet to be fixed

New Delhi, FebRUARY 16

The actual date of a trial for Kambala racer Srinivas Gowda, who has been called for an assessment at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Bengaluru, is yet to be decided. Sources said Gowda will be given time for acclimatisation before his actual trial. “Srinivas Gowda will be reaching SAI, Bengaluru, on Monday. He will be given a day or two of rest and acclimatisation before his trial takes place,” SAI sources said.

Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju had asked the top SAI coaches to conduct a trial of the 28-year-old Kambala jockey Gowda after video clips of him supposedly running a distance of 100m in just 9.55s during a traditional buffalo race in Karnataka evoked social media frenzy. Gowda, a construction worker from Moodabidri, is supposed to have taken just 13.62 seconds to run a distance of 145m, covering the first 100m in 9.55secs, at the Kambala at Aikala village near Mangaluru, prompting some on the social media to compare him with Usain Bolt, whose 100m world record is 9.58 secs.

“I’ll call Karnataka’s Srinivas Gowda for trials by the top SAI coaches. I’ll ensure that no talent in India is left out untested,” Rijiju wrote on his Twitter handle. SAI later said that Gowda’s train tickets have been booked and he will be assessed in Bengaluru on Monday. — PTI

Traditional race

Kambala is an annual race held in Karnataka where people sprint 142m through paddy fields with buffaloes. During the race, the racers try to bring the buffaloes under control by holding their reins tight and beating them up, making it amply clear that the animal plays an equally important role in achieving the timing.