Page 2 - Athletics

Olympics 2024: Avinash Sable finishes 11th in 3000m steeplechase final

India's Avinash Sable failed to keep pace with the best in the business as he finished 11th in the Paris Olympics men's 3000m steeplechase final race here on Wednesday. The 29-year-old Sable clocked 8 minutes 14.18 seconds while crossing the finish line after running in the lead briefly in the dramatic race. Sable had recently broken his own national record with a time of 8: 09.91 seconds at the Paris Diamond League. He has been training abroad for a long time in preparation for the Paris Games on funding from the government. Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco defended his title, clocking his season's best of 8:06.05 while Kenneth Rooks (8:06.41) of USA and Abraham Kibiwot (8:06.47) of Kenya took silver and bronze respectively. World record holder Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia did not finish the race as he fell on the track towards the end. Meanwhile, triple jumpers Praveen Chitravel and Abdulla Aboobacker failed to reach the finals after producing disappointing performances of 16.25m and

Sable becomes 1st Indian man to qualify for 3000m steeplechase final

Avinash Sable became the first Indian man to qualify for the 3000m steeplechase final after finishing fifth in his heat but quartermiler Kiran Pahal failed to book an automatic semi-final berth in women's 400m following a seventh place finish in her heat at the Paris Olympics on Monday. Sable, easily the most decorated track and field athlete after Neeraj Chopra in the current contingent, timed 8:15.43 minutes to finish fifth in the second heat to make it to the final round. As per rule, the top five athletes in each of the three heats qualify for the final. However, Sable's heat timing was well below his best effort of 8:09.91 minutes, which he had clocked at the Paris Diamond League last month. Sable's heat was won by Morocco's Mohamed Tindouft with a timing of 8:10.62 minutes, while Samuel Firewu of Ethiopia with 8:11.61 minutes came second. Abraham Kibiwot of Kenya (8:12.02 minutes) was third, while Ryuji Miura of Japan came fourth. He clocked 8:12.41 minutes. In fact, if one

Paris Olympics 2024 HIGHLIGHTS Day 11: Vinesh Phogat assures medal; GER def IND 3-2 in hockey S/F

India at Olympics 2024 HIGHLIGHTS: India lost to Germany in semifinals by 2-3, will now face Spain in bronze medal match. Neeraj Chopra to play finals on August 8. Check Paris 2024 highlights updates

Paris Olympics 2024: All you need to know from Leon Marchand to Teddy Riner

Simone Biles won her second gold medal of the Paris Summer Games on Thursday, delivering an electrifying performance

Paris Olympics 2024 HIGHLIGHTS, Day 6: Swapnil Kusale secures bronze; Lakshya qualifies for Q/F

India at Olympics 2024 HIGHLIGHTS: Nikhat loses in round of 16. India lost to Belgium 2-1 in hockey, Satwik and Chirag lost in Q/F, while Sindhu and Prannoy crashed out from pre-quarterfinals.

Refugee athletes want more people to compete at the Paris Olympics

The first time Perina Lokure Nakang began to run for sport, she ran 9 miles (14 kilometers) along the road near her refugee camp in northwestern Kenya. Now, the 21-year-old South Sudanese runner is competing in the Paris Olympics, among many of the 37 athletes on the Olympic refugee team who are pushing to see more refugees like her able to compete in the Games. I told myself if I continue running this, it is going to change my life, she said. In the Olympics, everyone is looking to me to represent them. They are getting support from former refugee Olympians and U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, who told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday that the team is a symbol of inclusion, of equality, of achievement for a large community around the world of refugees and displaced people." The Olympic refugee team was born at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, a collaboration between the International Olympic Committee and UNHCR, with just 10 athletes from four ...

Neeraj Chopra urges MEA to resolve javelin thrower Jena's visa problems

Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra on Thursday sought Ministry of External Affairs' intervention to resolve the visa issue of Kishore Jena so that his fellow javelin thrower can compete in the upcoming World Athletics Championships. The Athletics Federation of India on Wednesday said the Odisha javelin thrower's one-month visa was cancelled by the Embassy of Hungary in Delhi, rendering him a doubtful starter at the marquee athletics event slated in Budapest from August 19-27. Taking to his social media handle X (formerly Twitter), Chopra urged Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar to "find a solution". Just heard that there are issues with Kishore Jena's VISA, preventing him from entering Hungary for the World C'ships. I hope the authorities are able to find a solution, as this is one of the biggest moments of his career. Let's do everything we can, he posted tagging MEA and Jaishankar. Jena, who won gold in the Sri Lankan National Championships on July 30 with a personal best

Athletics: Neeraj Chopra to lead India's 28-member squad in Paris Olympics

Defending champion Neeraj Chopra will headline a 28-member Indian athletics contingent at the Paris Olympics starting July 26. The 26-year-old Tokyo Games gold medallist and reigning world champion in javelin throw has decided to skip the last Diamond League this weekend in Paris in order to prepare for the quadrennial extravaganza as almost all the selected names are on expected lines. The squad comprises 17 men and 11 women athletes with some of the other prominent names being Asian Games champions Avinash Sable, Tejinderpal Singh Toor along with sprint hurdler Jyothi Yarraji, to name a few. The 4x400m men's relay team, featuring Muhammed Anas, Muhammed Ajmal, Amoj Jacob and Rajesh Ramesh, which had created quite a stir by leaving behind the USA team in one of the heats at the last World Championships, will also be followed with keen interest. The track and field competition will be conducted at the Stade de France between August 1 to August 11. World Athletics has introduced ..

Over 30 dope sample collection officers dot National Inter-State C'ships

A huge posse of more than 30 dope control officers (DCO) from the NADA have descended here for sample collection from the athletes taking part at the National Inter-State Championships, the final Olympics qualifying event, and they have been instructed to do target testing also. Usually, dope samples of the medal winners are also collected at big events like the national championships, and the unprecedented number of DCOs present at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium is expected to lead to a large sample size. The DCOs have mostly come from New Delhi where the National Anti-Doping Agency head office is located. "I can't tell much, but we have a big team here because it's the most important domestic event of the year as it's the final Olympics qualifying event in athletics," one of the officers, who can't be named for obvious reasons, told PTI on Thursday. "We are also doing target selection of athletes for collection of samples. That much I can tell." Even athletes who finished third or bel

Chopra happy with his adductor, to address recurring issue post Olympics

Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra has opened up about his adductor niggle which has affected his season, saying he will consult "different doctors" after the Paris Olympics to address the nagging issue. Chopra returned to competitions after a month-long break to fetch his maiden gold medal at the Paavo Nurmi Games here on Tuesday with an effort of 85.97m, which came in his third attempt. The 26-year-old, who created history by becoming the first Indian to win a track and field medal at the Tokyo Olympics, had withdrawn from last month's Ostrava Golden Spike as a precautionary measure after he felt something in his adductor (group of muscles located on inner thighs). "The weather was good today, a little bit cold with the wind. But I am happy with my adductor now because I could do all 6 throws," Chopra said after the win. "Every year I have some problems with my adductor, maybe after the Olympics I am going to talk to different doctors." Chopra, however, expressed the desire to

Olympics 2024: Indian relay team's plan for qualification revealed by Jacob

Determined to improve its time and qualify for the Paris Olympics, the Indian men's 4x400m relay squad had planned to shadow the formidable USA team at the World Athletics Relays, sprinter Amoj Jacob had revealed. The Indian men's squad comprising Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Muhammed Ajmal, Arokia Rajiv and Jacob qualified for the Paris Games after finishing second in their heat at the World Athletics Relays in Nassau, Bahamas earlier this month. The Indian quartet finished with a collective timing of 3 minutes and 3.23 with USA (2:59.95) expectedly topping the heat. "We knew that we had the US in our Heats and they mostly run below 3 minutes. So, our plan was to stay close to them in the race, which will not only improve our time but also help us qualify for Paris Games," Jacob told SAI Media. "Our target was to register a time between 3:00 and 3:10 so that our confidence is high going into the Paris Olympics," he added. The Indian team was in third position when anchor-leg runner Jaco

Paris 2024: Neeraj Chopra to compete in Finland's Paavo Nurmi Games

Superstar Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra will compete in the prestigious Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland on June 18, where he will be up against 19-year-old sensation Max Dehning of Germany, the latest entrant in the 90m club, the organisers said. The 26-year-old Chopra, who will begin his season in the Doha Diamond League Meeting on May 10, had won a silver in the 2022 edition of the Paavo Nurmi Games with a throw of 89.30m -- his career second best -- while he pulled out of the event in 2023 as he was recovering from an injury then. Chopra has a personal best of 89.94m. The Paavo Nurmi Games are named after the legendary Finnish middle and long distance runner. It is a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series event, one of the most prestigious single-day competitions outside the Diamond League Meeting series. "Javelin throw Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra will return to Turku in June. Chopra will compete in the Paavo Nurmi Games after a year's break and will meet a ..

Hard to believe Pak's Nadeem struggling to get a new javelin: Neeraj Chopra

Star Indian athlete Neeraj Chopra was astonished to know that his rival from across the border Arshad Nadeem is struggling to get a new javelin, given his standing in the world of athletics. Pakistan's ace javelin exponent Nadeem had won the 2022 Commonwealth Games gold in Birmingham with a massive 90.18m throw. He had bagged the bronze medal at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games where Chopra had clinched the top spot. While Chopra, the Olympic and world champion, and Nadeem are fierce competitors on the field, they are known for their camaraderie off the pitch. "It is hard to believe that he has been struggling to get a new javelin. Given his credentials, this should not be a big issue at all," Chopra told SAI Media on Monday. Nadeem recently said he is struggling to acquire an international-standard javelin for several years and expressed his frustration about that. "It has now got to a stage where the javelin is damaged and I have asked the national federation and my coach to do ...

Gulveer's national record 10000m run not enough to qualify for Paris 2024

Asian Games bronze medallist athlete Gulveer Singh shattered a 16-year-old national record in the men's 10000m to finish second in his heat at The Ten in San Juan Capistrano in California. The 25-year-old clocked 27.41.81 on Saturday to better the earlier national mark of 28:02.89 by over 20 seconds that stood in Surendra Singh's name since 2008. However, Gulveer's effort was not enough for Olympic qualification as he missed the Paris Games qualification time of 27:00.00 by over 41 seconds. The other Indian in the heat, Kartik Kumar finished ninth in the race with a timing of 28:01.90, which was also better than Surendra's earlier national record. Avinash Sable, who was competing in the same event, did not finish (DNF) his heat, pulling out of the race in the 15th lap at the 6000m mark. In the women's 10000m, Parul Chaudhary finished a disappointing 20th, clocking 32:02.08. She too missed the Paris qualification, which stands at 30:40.00.

National Games gold medallist Parvej Khan finishes seventh in USA's NCAA

National Games gold medallist Parvej Khan finished seventh in the one mile track event's final in the NCAA Championships of the United States in Boston, one of the most competitive collegiate competitions in the world. Khan clocked 4 minutes 03.05 seconds to finish seventh on Saturday, having become the first Indian to qualify for the final of a track event in the NCAA Championships. The 19-year-old Indian clocked 3 minutes 57.126 seconds to finish third in the preliminary run. The USA's Luke Houser finished first with a timing of 4 minutes 01.72 second while Australian Adam Spencer came second in 4 minutes 01.92 seconds. Lucas Bons (4:02.12) of the US was third. Khan was representing University of Florida as he earned a college scholarship there last year. Khan, who belongs to a farming family in Mewat region in Haryana, had won the 1500m gold in the 2022 National Games with a new personal best of 3.40.89 in Gandhinagar. One mile run though is not popular among Indian athletes

State funeral for marathon world record-holder Kelvin Kiptum from Kenya

Kenya's world marathon record holder Kelvin Kiptum was given a state funeral Friday following his death in car crash earlier this month, as many Kenyans urged the government to do more to protect the country's famous athletes. Hundreds of dignitaries from Kenyan President William Ruto to Sebastian Coe, head of World Athletics joined family, friends and fans of Kiptum in paying their last respects as he was interred in Naiberi, about 6 kilometers (4 miles) from his hometown of Chepkorio in western Kenya. The 24-year-old runner and his Rwandan coach, Gervais Hakizimana, were killed in the crash two weeks ago near the town of Kaptagat in western Kenya, in the heart of the high-altitude region that's renowned as a training base for the best distance runners from Kenya and across the world. Kiptum was one of the most exciting prospects to emerge in road running in years, having broken the world record in what was only his third appearance in an elite marathon. His record of 2 hours and

Asian Indoor Championships: Lane infringement costs Gulveer 3000m gold

India's Gulveer Singh lost his men's 3000m gold medal in the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships here after he was disqualified for 'lane infringement'. Gulveer had clocked 8 minutes 07.48 seconds to finish on top of the podium in the 3000m final, a non Olympic athletics event, late on Monday. He was later disqualified for lane infringement and a late night 'appeal' by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) was also rejected. "Yes, it was ruled that Gulveer committed lane infringement. Of course, AFI protested but the protest was rejected," a coach, who is with the team, told PTI. "The jury said they have enough evidence to conclude that Gulveer made lane infringement." Various clauses of technical rules 17.2 and 17.3 provides for how an athlete can commit lane infringement and under what circumstances he or she may not be disqualified. Technical Rule 17.2.3 says: "In all races run in lanes (or any part of a race run in lanes), each athlete shall keep within their allocated lan

Asian Indoor Athletics Championships: Toor, Jyothi, Harmilan bag gold

Ace shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor and hurdler Jyothi Yarraji rewrote their national records, while long distance sensation Harmilan Bains sizzled on the track as India grabbed three gold medals on the opening day of the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships here on Saturday. Two-time Asian Games gold medallist Toor hurled the shot put at a distance of 19.72 metres in his second attempt for a new national indoor record. Kazakhstan's Ivanov Ivan (19.08m) and Iran's Mehdi Saberi (18.74m) took the silver and bronze medals respectively. Earlier, Jyothi Yarraji marginally bettered her own national record by clocking 8.12s in the women's 60m hurdles to win the gold. The 2022 Asian Games silver medallist in the 100m hurdles had the previous best timing of 8:13s at the same event last year which had earned her a runner-up finish. The 24-year-old athlete topped her heat with a timing of 8:22s and in the final she did better to finish ahead of Japan's Asuka Tereda (8.21s). Lui Lai Yiu o

Kenya's Kelvin Kiptum, marathon world-record holder, dies in a car crash

Kelvin Kiptum was one of the most promising newcomers to road running in a long time, and in August, he was a strong candidate to win the gold medal in the marathon at the Paris Olympics.

3 National Games participants among 11 to get reduced 3-year ban for doping

Three National Games participants were among 11 sportspersons, who ended up getting reduced sanctions for failed dope tests after admitting to their offence within 20 days of being charged, the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has revealed. Liable to be banned for four years, their sentence was reduced by one year due to early acceptance of guilt earlier this month. Their names appeared in the latest NADA list of those who were handed reduced sanctions of three years under Article 10.8 of the NADA Rules. Kamaljeet Kaur (100m and 200m), Ajay Kumar (5000m and 10000m) and Harjodhvir Singh (5000m and 10000m) are the three track-and-field athletes, who failed dope tests in the October 25-November 9 National Games in Goa. Article 10.8.1 of the NADA Anti-Doping Rules allows athletes charged with a four-year ban to benefit from a one year reduction if they admit the violation and accept the penalty within 20 days of being charged. Article 10.8.2 provides an opportunity for the athlete to