CANADA GAMES: WRESTLER JASKARN RANU WINS GOLD

B.C.’s Jakarn Ranu won gold in the 69 kg category, while Many Kahlon got silver in the 130 kg category and Paul Sahota bagged bronze in the 115 kg category at the Canada Games in Sherbrooke, Quebec. Rajin Gill came fourth in the 100 kg category.

South Asian wrestlers from Ontario did well, too, with Raj Gill winning gold in the 85 kg category and Pawanpreet Sekhon bagging silver in the 100 kg category.

Results: Individual Wrestling

69 kg : 1. Jaskarn Ranu (BC)

85 kg: 1. Raj Gill (ON)

100 kg: 2. Pawanpreet Sekhon (ON); 4. Rajin Gill (BC)

115 kg: 3. Paul Sahota (BC)

130 kg: 2. Many Kahlon (BC)

 

 

BC WOMEN’S SOCCER TEAM WINS GOLD

Six of the 18 players on the BC Women’s soccer team that won gold at Canada Games were South Asians: Simmrin Dhaliwal of Surrey (center midfield), Jasmin Dhanda of Surrey (striker or attacking midfield), Manpreet Johal of Surrey (center midfield), Jasmine Mander of Delta (midfield), Priya Sandhu of Surrey (goalkeeper) and Amanpreet Shergill of Surrey (Centerback).

The British Columbia Women’s Canada Games Soccer Team (Team BC) won the gold medal by defeating a strong team from Quebec in the finals. British Columbia won all five of their games in the competition beating Manitoba, Alberta, New Brunswick, Ontario, and Quebec.

 

 

SIKH MOTORCYCLE CLUB: FIRST PLACE

For the first time, on the special invitation by the parade managing committee, the 40 members of the Sikh Motorcycle Club along with their impressive motorbikes took part in the 56th Loggers Day Parade in Squamish under the leadership of club president Jagdeep Singh Dhaliwal and founder of club Avtar Singh Dhillon. By taking part in the parade, the club was further able to promote Sikhism and educate the rest of the community on what it means to be a Sikh and the meaning and importance of turban in Sikh religion and culture. What is more, the judges awarded the club the first prize based on their overall appearance, attractiveness and discipline. The Loggers Day Festival organizers have already asked the club to participate in next year’s event and hopefully with as much fanfare and enthusiasm as this year.

 

 

PRINCESS MARGARET SECONDARY: NASA-BOEING COMPETITION

This was the third consecutive year that students from Surrey’s Princess Margaret Secondary School had qualified for the International Space Settlement Design Competition at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, from August 2-6, but this time they won the prestigious competition sponsored by NASA and Boeing and became the first Canadian team to ever win this competition.

The team comprised of Alice Ho (President), Ishmeet Singh, Zoubhair Moosuddee, Harinder Khak, Gurleen Brar, Mariyam Ali, Ramansh Chabra, Aaaqil Hassan, Taran Gill and Hassaan Sheikh, with Sumit Rathore of Simon Fraser University as the team mentor and Joe Sihota as the teacher sponsor.

This year, Princess Margaret secondary partnered with schools from Florida, Wales and India – under the company name Grumbo Aerospace – to take first place in this grueling competition – the first time in the competition’s 20-year history and in Canadian history.

The 20 schools that qualified for the international finals were formed into four “companies” whose task this year was to design a settlement on Earth’s moon where over 10,000 people were to make their homes.

 

 

 SOUTH ASIAN WRESTLERS: 3 MEDALS AT CADET PAN AM

South Asian wrestlers won three of the five medals that Canada bagged at the 2013 Cadet Pan American Wrestling Championships in Medellin, Colombia, that wrapped up on August 11.

Two of the medal winners were from B.C.:

* Justin Gill, who won silver in the 69 kg category.

* Jimsher Sidhu, who bagged bronze in the 85 kg category.

The other wrestler was Jaivir Boal of Ontario who won silver in the 100 kg category.

Miri Piri Wrestling Club’s Sucha Mann, who also travelled to Colombia, is the proud coach of many star wrestlers including Justin Gill.

Jimsher Sidhu is from the Khalsa Wrestling Club, while Jaivir Boal is from Mississauga’s Akhara of Champions headed by Olympian wrestler Ashok Kumar.

 

SURREY’S JUJHAR KHAIRA: EDMONTON OILERS

Jujhar Khaira, a power forward selected 63rd overall by Edmonton at the 2012 NHL Draft, signed his three-year entry-level contract with the team  after spending the past season competing as a freshman with the Michigan Tech Huskies in the NCAA’s Western Collegiate Athletic Association, according to a report on the Edmonton Oilers website.

The report said: “Rather than returning to the Huskies as a sophomore this coming season, Khaira accepted the ELC offer from the Oilers and is looking to make his pro hockey debut in 2013-14. He could also potentially play in the Western Hockey League for the Everett Silvertips, who hold his major junior rights.”

The 6’3″, 189-pound winger had a solid first season, ranking third on the Huskies in scoring with 25 points in 37 games. Khaira played for the Prince George Spruce Kings of the British Columbia Hockey League in 2011-12, tallying 79 points in 54 games.

Jujhar’s dad is a gravel truckowner-operator and his mom is a speech language pathologist with the Surrey School Board.

 

 

LANGLEY’S SHARK CLUB: RACIAL DISCRIMINATION

The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal found  Langley’s Shark Club had racially discriminated against three South Asians – Serge Rai, 43, and Manjinder Gill and his wife, Manjit, who are in their forties – and ordered the club to shell out $10,000 to each of the three “for injury to dignity and self-respect” for refusing them entry on December 9, 2011, for a graduation party.

In the 56-page ruling, tribunal member Norman Trerise, noted in the section “Conclusions Respecting Credibility”: “In all of the circumstances, I find that I am unable to rely on the evidence of any of the witnesses who provided evidence on behalf of the Shark Club. Their evidence was self-serving, internally contradictory and contradictory as between themselves.”

Trerise noted: “Up to 20 percent of the patrons of the Shark Club are Indo-Canadian.

“I note, however, that the fact that some of the Respondents’ employees are visible minorities and Indo-Canadians have been allowed entry into the bar the evening of December 9, 2011 does not mean that discrimination against the Complainants did not occur.”

Trerise also pointed out: “No viable explanation has been provided by [doorman] Mr. [Andrew] Schmah as to why he denied entrance to the Rai Group on December 9, 2011. I am alive to the Complainants’ submissions that racial discrimination is seldom overt. Nevertheless, there must be some reasonable basis for determining that racial discrimination has taken place and the complainant bears the onus of proof to establish discrimination on a balance of probabilities. Such a decision should never lightly be made when one considers the seriousness of the allegation.”

 

 

SUKHBIR SINGH BADAL CANCELS CANADA TRIP

The Times of India reported that Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal had cancelled his planned 10-day visit to Canada after the Canadian government said that they will not offer any immunity to him against any civil suit that may be filed against him there. They have also allegedly refused to provide him security during the trip, the newspaper reported.

Sukhbir was scheduled to tour Canada from September 13 to 22.

The newspaper said that a confidential note sent on August 6 by the ministry of external affairs to the Punjab government had warned Sukhbir to not go ahead with his scheduled visit.

The newspaper said: “The note was sent to Punjab chief secretary Rakesh Singh and additional director general of police of law and security Dinkar Gupta and also said that the Canadian government has refused to provide security to Sukhbir.

““The Royal Canadian Mounted Police will provide security cover to a visiting dignitary only if he or she is an international protectee and is so recognized by the government of Canada…It is therefore likely that security may not be afforded to our visitors,” the note said citing the Canadian government’s reply.”

Sukhbir told the Indian Express newspaper: “It is unfortunate. I am the deputy chief minister of Punjab and also the head of my party. If they (Canadian government) cannot show due courtesies there is no point in going.”

 

 

SUNNY DHINSA: WINS BRONZE AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sunny Dhinsa of Vancouver won a bronze medal as the 2013 FILA Junior World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, on Sunday, becoming the only male wrestler to bag a medal for Canada.

Dhinsa belongs to the Guru Gobind Singh Wrestling Club and club members gave him a warm welcome at Vancouver International Airport when he returned home this week.

Dhinsa, wrestling in the 120 kg weight category, opened the day with a clear 4-0 victory over Ukrainian wrestler Andriy Vlasov. In his second match, facing the eventual world champion in the category, Dhinsa lost the tough battle 8-0 by technical superiority. But thanks to the repechage system (a practice amongst ladder competitions – those with a series of rounds of competition – that allows participants who failed to meet qualifying standards by a small margin to continue to the next round), Dhinsa was given a second chance and re-entered the tournament.  He defeated Slim Trabelsi of Tunisia, winning the two-period match 7-0. With this, Dhinsa earned himself a spot to wrestle for bronze. He defeated the tough Russian competitor Georgii Gagaev. Taking a 4-1 lead at the half, Dhinsa came back with power and managed to pin the Russian wrestler, ending the match.

 

 

HARLEEN MALHANS OF TORONTO IS MISS INDIA-CANADA 2013

It was a night of entertainment, prestige and glamour all rolled into one – the 23rd annual Miss India-Canada Event. At the end of the evening, Harleen Malhans of Toronto was crowned Miss India-Canada 2013.

The 16 delegates began the evening with a high-energy dance sequence that captivated the audience and kept them in their seats for the remainder of the evening.

Each delegate had to completed the first three segments: Evening Gown, Talent, and Indian Dress. Next, the emcees announced that Harleen Malhans of Toronto had won the Chevrolet Spark Award for Best Performance and the Zee TV Canada TV Personality Award. Aradhna Juneja of Toronto won the Brita Miss Congeniality Award, Ruchika Bindra of Montreal won Miss Photogenic, and Neha Bhatia of Scarborough won the People’s Choice Award.

The Second Runner-up was Reema Khithani, the First Runner-up was Nikki Shah and this year’s Miss India-Canada 2013 was Harleen Malhans.

Harleen Malhans was born and raised in Toronto. The 23-year-old is the youngest of four daughters. She has been fortunate enough to share the stage with the Indian actress and politician Jaya Prada and one of India’s most influential vocalists, Manna Dey.

Harleen successfully earned a B.A. in Communication Studies at York University. Currently, Harleen stays busy by juggling a career at Canada Protection Plan, assisting in the production of various shows with a Canadian television network, and is also the upcoming fashion host of a new Toronto-based television show.

It is her life-long dream to become a successful and well-respected South Asian television personality.

For further information, visit www.MissIndiaCanada.com.