Hangzhou, Sep 30 (PTI) India's Niraj Verma qualified for the final of the canoe sprint events at the Asian Games along with the men's and women's pairs, here on Saturday.

Niraj topped the canoe single 1000m semi-final by clocking 4:31.626s after missing the final qualification in heat 1, where he managed a time of 4:25.162 seconds.

Also Read | Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool, Premier League 2023-24 Live Streaming Online: How To Watch EPL Match Live Telecast on TV & Football Score Updates in IST?.

Taipei's Kuan-Chieh Lai emerged the winner by clocking a blistering 4:02.431s.

Later, the top three in the four-canoer semifinals advanced to the medal round with Niraj taking the top spot.

Also Read | East Bengal FC vs Hyderabad FC, ISL 2023-24 Live Streaming Online on JioCinema: Watch Telecast of EBFC vs HFC Match in Indian Super League 10 on TV and Online.

The eight-man final is scheduled for Monday.

The Indian team of Ribason Singh Ningthoujam and Gyaneshwor Singh Philem reached the canoe double 500m final after finishing third with a combined timing of 1:57.225 seconds in the semifinals.

This was after they finished fourth in heats with a timing of 1:54.829 seconds.

In the women's Kayak double 500m semifinal, the Indian duo of Binita Chanu Oinam and Parvathy Geetha finished second with a combined timing of 2:07.036 seconds after claiming fourth place in the heats, clocking 2:06.956 seconds.

India have won only one bronze medal so far in the sport at the Asian Games -- a bronze at the 1994 Hiroshima edition.

In the last edition in Jakarta, Indian athletes made eight finals across slalom and sprint events but could not secure a medal.

A kayak has a double bladed paddle whereas a canoe has a single bladed paddle.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)