Nayana, who had won the same medal in the under-17 category last year, was an emphatic winner, clocking 1:01.35 seconds, leaving in her wake the skaters from Karnataka and Maharashtra. She has won in KIWG 2023 in Gulmarg. Unlike KIWG 2024, where there were two skating categories \u2013 under-17 and 17 years plus \u2013 the skating competition this time is an open one. With several top Indian skaters away in Korea and China to train for the Asian Winter Games in February, this year will see some of the best junior skaters in the country.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Nayana is one of them. She had won two gold medals in KIWG 2024 and then went on to win a 3000m women\u2019s relay gold at the 2024 Asian Open Short Track Speed Skating Championship in Jakarta in August. She has been building on her exposure and experience. \u201c(In Jakarta), there were participants from different countries, which is great, but playing in our own country feels entirely different. This year, I\u2019m back on the ice for the first time, and it\u2019s a nostalgic feeling to be back in Ladakh. It\u2019s been a hat-trick of gold medals for me since I won in Gulmarg in 2023. I feel super great about it,\u201d Nayana told SAI Media.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Khelo India Winter Games are not only about winning medals. It\u2019s about gaining experience and setting higher benchmarks. Although he did not win the gold medal in Leh, it was quite a feeling for Guru Harshan H. of Tamil Nadu to finish second in his first long-track Khelo India Winter Games race.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The 14-year Harshan finished behind Karnataka\u2019s Harshith K., who won the second skating gold medal of the day at Gupuks Pond. Sachin Singh of Haryana finished third. Taking part in a long track race in an atmosphere he is not used to, Harshan\u2019s performance was definitely affected by Ladakh\u2019s thin air. \u201cI could not give my best,\u201d said Harshan. He added that the Gupuk surface was difficult to manage as he was used to skating on artificial ice.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In 2019, Harshan bagged a bronze in the under-10 category Open event organised by the Ice Skating Association of India. Harshan also participated in the third Khelo India Winter Games at Gulmarg in short-track speed skating in 2023. For KIWG 2025, Guru joined a week-long camp in Gulmarg, sponsored by the Tamil Nadu government.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The 14-year Harshan finished behind Karnataka\u2019s Harshith K., who won the second skating gold medal of the day at Gupuks Pond. Sachin Singh of Haryana finished third. Taking part in a long track race in an atmosphere he is not used to, Harshan\u2019s performance was definitely affected by Ladakh\u2019s thin air. \u201cI could not give my best,\u201d said Harshan. He added that the Gupuk surface was difficult to manage as he was used to skating on artificial ice.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
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