Odisha women were crowned champions in 21st East Zone Senior Kho-kho Championship, which was held at East Midnapore in West Bengal from April 13 to 15, 2018. According to a press release by Odisha Kho Kho Association, Odisha women beat host West Bengal in the final 18-15.

Earlier, Odisha women beat Assam 14-9, Jharkhand 13-7 and Tripura 13-1 to march into the semifinals, where they prevailed over Madhya Pradesh 9-2. Sasmita Nathasharma of Odisha was awarded the prize as best woman scorer.

Odisha missed out on a double crown as their men settled as runners-up after losing to West Bengal final the summit clash 13-14. Odisha men reached the final with a 18-3 semifinal win over Manipur. They earlier reached the last-four stage, defeating Assam, Jharkhand and Tripura 16-12, 16-15 and 12-1 respectively.

ODISHA TEAMS:

MEN: Jagannath Murmu (Captain), Lipun Mukhi, Siddheswar Tudu, Sukunath Singh, Satyajit Singh, Bharat Pradhan, Dipti Ranjan Parida, Ajay Mandra, Karan Marandi, Arjun Singh, Ranesh Nayak, Samarjeet Rout. Coach: Malay Ranjan Behera; Manager: Chintamani Pradhan.

WOMEN: Mandakini Majhi (Captain), Priyanka Singh, Sabila Khatun, Subnum Khatun, Buji Kadraka, Shibani Gamanto, Subhashree Singh, Rupali Pradhan, Rashmita Khatoi, Puspa Marandi, Asha Marandi, Sasmita Nathasharma. Coach: Debi Prasad Das; Manager: Mamina Behera.
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PHOTO: Players of Odisha men and women teams at the closing ceremony of the East Zone Senior Kho-kho Championship in East Midnapore on April 15, 2018.