2021 Asian Rowing Championships: Arjun-Ravi win gold in men's double sculls

Indian rowers gave a good account of themselves in Thailand’s Rayong watercourse on Saturday. Arjun Lal Jat and Ravi claimed gold in the men’s double sculls, while Parminder Singh clinched his maiden international medal by winning silver in the men’s single sculls at the 2021 Asian Rowing Championships.

With Indian rowers having entered five finals scheduled for Sunday, the medal tally is expected to swell, a team official told Sportskeeda.

The Indian pair of Arjun and Ravi began their hunt for a gold medal at the continental event on a positive note and were ahead of their rivals halfway through the 2,000m race.

After covering the first 1,000m in 3:17.79 seconds, Arjun and Ravi continued to press hard in the second half to cross the finish line in 6:57.88 seconds.

China won silver with a time of 7:02.37 seconds. Uzbekistan took bronze, clocking 7:07.73 seconds.

Parminder was on course for a gold medal in the early stages of the men’s single sculls, but appeared to have slowed down in the second half of the 2,000m race. His silver-winning time was 8:07.32 seconds.

Uzbekistan’s Kholmurzaev Shakhoz won gold in a time of 7:56.30 seconds. Indonesia’s Memo took home the bronze with a time of 8:10.05 seconds.

Meanwhile, Arvind Singh reached the finals of the men’s lightweight single sculls after topping the preliminary round competition.

“Arvind has a bright chance of a podium finish. He had a brilliant run in the qualification round. He should be able to repeat his performance in the finals,” the team official said.

Ashish Phugat and Sukhjinder Singh will compete in the repechage round of the lightweight men’s double sculls.

Uzbekistan, Vietnam, China and India, apart from hosts Thailand, are competing in the region's first major rowing competition since the Tokyo Olympics.