Team Orisports 31-Aug-2010 123
Eminent athletics coach Arun Kumar Das retired from government service as the State Assistant Director (Sports) today. He was given a warm farewell by athletes, coaches and officials here at Kalinga Stadium and the Directorate of Sports.
Born on August 8, 1952 at Tentulia Sasan in Ganjam district, Das groomed scores of national and international level athletes during his 35-year-long career as a coach. His proteges include international hurdlers Anuradha Biswal, Sahebani Oram, Jauna Murmu; javeline thrower Susama Behera; high jumper Usharani Mishra; long jumper Hemant Patel; sprinter Farooq Ali; long-distance runners Anil Minz and Baiju Marandi.
Gentle and affectionate, Das also rendered commendable service to improve the fitness standard of sportspersons in general. Leading beneficiaries of his fitness tips were hockey Olympians Dilip Tirkey and Lazrus Barla.
Himself a quality javeline thrower, Das excelled in competitive sphere, winning two bronze medals in National championships (1971-72) and one silver in the Veteran Asian Championship (1990) at Kuala Lumpur. His career best performance came in the 1971 Junior National Championship at Ahmedabad, where he hurled the speer to a distance of 57.96 meters. The effort also fetched him a meet record.
Das received the best recognition of his career in 2005 when he was honoured with the Biju Patnaik State Sports Award as the Outstanding Coach of the Year.
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PHOTO: Arun Kumar Das is given farewell at the State Directorate of Sports in Bhubaneswar onAugust 31, 2010..
