Kishore Kumar shines on Day 1 of Indian Open of Surfing

Mangaluru: Chennai surfer Kishore Kumar stunned everyone with his performance under testing conditions, as he made his way into the semifinals with the highest score of 12.67 on the first day of the 4th edition of the Indian Open of Surfing on Thursday.Sasihithlu Beach was buzzing with action from early in the morning, marking the beginning of the calendar year for Indian surfing. The three-day premier surfing competition of India is the official national championship of the Surfing Federation of India (SFI)–the governing body for the sport of surfing.The other surfers who got high scores were Tayin Arun (10.83), Dinesh Selvamani (9.53), Sekar Pachai (9) Harish P (8.6) and Selvam M (8.53). Wind and rain played spoilsport at the end, as the judges had to call it a day before the proceedings of the Women’s Open semi-finals could begin, and will now be held on Friday.The first day’s round saw Karnataka and Tamil Nadu surfers dominate the proceedings, in both the Men’s Open and Groms (U-16) categories. Twelve surfers from round one in the men’s category advanced to round two, where they will meet another 16 surfers who have already qualified based on last year’s rankings. Thus, a total of 28 surfers from the men’s open category will battle it out in round 2 on Friday, to ensure their place in the quarterfinals. Surfer Kishore Kumar said, “This wasn’t my best performance, as the waves were different from what I am used to back home in Chennai. The conditions were also challenging, and I could have scored better, but I am satisfied that I made it to the semi-finals. I hope the conditions will be favourable on Friday.”Dinesh Selvamani, who registered the highest score of 9.53 in the men’s open category, said, “The conditions and competitions were equally challenging. I am looking forward to surfing in my natural style and seal a quarterfinal spot.”The Groms (U16) category also saw stiff competition between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka surfers, as four surfers from each state have booked their semi-final berths scheduled on Friday. “The conditions were good and clean early in the morning. Wind set in a little earlier than expected. Overall, it was a good start to the competition,” said competition director Nawaz Jabbar.The day began with an energetic performance by local students, followed by the official opening of the Indian Open of Surfing competition by dignitaries including Manikya, deputy director, tourism department, Ram Mohan Paranjape, VP, SFI, and Dhananjaya Shetty, director, Surfing Swamy Foundation.