CHANDIGARH, DEC 22 :Shiva Keshavan won a bronze for India in the 2008 Luge Asian Championships in ‘Spiral’ Track in Nagano, Japan.According to information received here today, it was a closely contested race between the 10 finalists. Shiva was in second place after the first run with a time of 51.048 three tenth behind Ocuchi Takahisa of Japan 50.734.
" I suffered a technical problem in the second heat two-third down the track which caused my sled to go out of control and i risked a crash. However I managed to take control once again and finished the run. Unfortunately the incident cost me some time and also slowed me down in the remaining section," according to Shiva Keshavan.
Still he did manage to do enough to keep himself on the podium with a total time of 1minute 44.155 combined in the two heats.
Positions: Gold: Ogichi Takahisa(JPN) 1:41:509.
Silver: Yamamura Yohan (JPN) 1:43.164.
Bronze: Shiva Keshavan (JPN) 1:44.155.
"I am happy with my come-back after two years of absence from the track and I am satisfied my performance in Nagano. I need to get more exposure to competition and I require greater mental preparation for the races. The new equipment that I have been able to procure thanks to the support from Coca Cola and Swiss International Airlines have enabled me to improve my timing since 2006," says Shiva.
His next destination is the world Cup in Turin in January. Before that he I will head to India for the New Year break from December 25 January 1.