From pageant winners to athletes: Miss India finalists compete in sports day at Bennett University

One would think a Miss India would be more at home walking the ramp than running a 100m sprint, but on Saturday, the 30 finalists of fbb Colors Femina Miss India 2018, co-powered By Sephora & Rajnigandha Pearls, proved they could play sports just as well as they could do the catwalk. The beauties with brains ventured into brawny territory at Bennett University in Greater Noida as they played everything from track and field, basketball and badminton to swimming and table tennis at the Bennett University Sports Day in association with Miss India 2018. It was an unusual sight for the students of Bennett University, as they watched the pageant winners excel in a variety of sports, and the girls showed just why every Miss India is an all-rounder.
Finalists warm up before the action begins

fbb Colors Femina Miss India Delhi 2018 Gayatri Bhardwaj faces off against fbb Colors Femina Miss India Gujarat 2018 Anushka Luhar

After a brief warm-up, the 30 finalists of fbb Colors Femina Miss India 2018 lined up in three groups of 10 each for a 100m sprint on the university's football ground. It wasn’t easy to keep energy levels high on a not-so-sunny but a very humid day, but nothing could sap the spirit of these girls who came all prepared for the sports day. Fbb Colors Femina Miss India Delhi 2018 Gayatri Bhardwaj was the winner of the 100m sprint. She said that she used to love running in school. “I have always believed that running is the best form of exercise. I ran almost after five years today. I used to run in school. It was important for me to practise hard for this,” she said. For Gayatri, it was a double win as she also triumphed in the table tennis competition, beating fbb Colors Femina Miss India Gujarat 2018 Anushka Luhar 2-1 in a nail-biting encounter.

fbb Colors Femina Miss India West Bengal 2018 Prarthana Sarkar

Contestants during the badminton competition

fbb Colors Femina Miss India Haryana 2018 Meenakshi Chaudhary was a state-level player in badminton, and she emerged the winner of the badminton and basketball competitions. More than 20 girls participated in the basketball competition, where the state winners were given three practice attempts and five final chances to shoot hoops. Meenkashi and fbb Colors Femina Miss India Manipur 2018 Nimrit Kaur were tied, as both had shot two hoops, and the tie-breaker had Meenakshi shooting the final hoop and winning the challenge. “I was a little apprehensive on how this day was going to start. We were all very tired when we reached Bennett University in the morning but as soon as the competition started, we all got so pumped up. In basketball, I won after the tie-breaker. I feel great because I have never really played basketball. I have played the sport only till school, so it felt great winning two competitions,” she said.

After a grueling Iron Maiden Challenge, Shrutiksha Nayak, fbb Colors Femina Miss India Odisha 2018, tries her hand at the world-class gym equipment at Bennett University

At the basketball competition the state winners were given three practice attempts and five final chances to shoot hoops

The girls also sweated it out in the gym, participating in the 'Iron Maiden Challenge', which had them trying to do as many weighted squats and shoulder presses as they could in a minute. fbb Colors Femina Miss India Mizoram 2018 Lily Lalremkimi Darnei won the challenge with 35 reps, beating the other 29 competitors. The final competition of the day was a 100m freestyle swim race, where fbb Colors Femina Miss India West Bengal 2018 Prarthana Sarkar emerged as the winner.

fbb Colors Femina Miss India Manipur 2018 Nimrit Kaur


Contestants during 'Iron Maiden Challenge'

While the state winners of the North Zone had already visited the university last month, it was the first time for the other state winners at the university. Bennett University is a fun place to study where celebrities from different fields regularly visit the campus, including Pullela Gopichand in January. “It is such a huge and beautiful campus,” echoed all the winners when they first saw it. The state winners were impressed by the infrastructure, state-of-the-art sport facilities and the modern amenities available. fbb Colors Femina Miss India Gujarat 2018 Anushka Luhar said, “It’s a beautiful campus with such state-of-the-art facilities. The students here are lucky that they have access to all this within the campus.”

Contestants were divided in three groups of 10 each for a 100m sprint


(L-R) fbb Colors Femina Miss India Mizoram 2018 Lily Lalremkimi Darnei fbb Colors Femina Miss India West Bengal 2018 Prarthana Sarkar
30 finalists of fbb Colors Femina Miss India 2018