Six athletes to represent the country at ISU-recognised short track event in Dehradun
KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 25
Nepal is set to make history by participating in an international-level ice skating competition for the first time, with six athletes representing the country at the Short Track Speed Ice Skating Competition in India.
The competition is being organised by the Ice Skating Federation of India in collaboration with the Asian Skating Union (ASU) and the International Skating Union (ISU). It will be held from (December 27–29) at the Himadri International Ice Skating Rink Centre, located within the Maharana Pratap Sports Complex in Dehradun.
According to Achyut Khanal, President of the Nepal Skating and Skateboarding Association, Nepal will be represented by two female and four male athletes across senior and junior categories. Ramesh Moktan and Arun Khatwe will compete in the senior men's 1,000 metres, while Pari Guragain and Alka Ghimire will take part in the junior women's 500 metres. In the junior men's 250 metres, Xavier Jung Thapa and Sayan Aryal will compete.
The Nepali delegation will be led by Sanju Shrestha as team manager, with Satya Thapa, General Secretary of the Association, serving as an official.
Bidding farewell to the team, Nepal Olympic Committee President Jeevan Ram Shrestha described the participation as a landmark achievement for Nepali sports. He noted that ice skating, a Winter Olympic discipline, is well suited to Nepal's geography and expressed confidence that the country could achieve international success in the sport in the future.
The Nepal Skating and Skateboarding Association is currently an applicant national federation of the International Skating Union (ISU).