Redemption, realization of a father's aspirations, a significant stride in burgeoning careers, and validation of early life decisions, the Paris Olympics qualification held varying significance for the diverse members of the Indian men's and women's 4x400m relay teams, clinching their tickets to Paris. Below are insight into the eight athletes, four men and four women, who clinched second place in their respective qualifying heats at the World Athletics Relay in Nassau, Bahamas, thereby securing their passage to the Paris Olympics. MR Poovamma For Olympian Poovamma, it's a redemption of sorts after she faced the ignominy of a two-year ban for a doping offence in 2021 before getting a favourable decision after the intervention of Kerala High Court. The 33-year-old, a multiple medallist in the individual 400m and 4x400m relay race in the 2014 and 2018 Asian Games, returned to action during the Goa National Games last year after serving a two-year ban. "Finally, I can return to action now. The ordeal is over, though it left me mentally distressed," she had told PTI then. The Arjuna Awardee is one of the most decorated athletes in the country, having won a women's 4x400m relay gold and 400m individual silver in the 2013 Asian Championships. She went on to win a gold and a bronze in the women's 4x400m relay and 400m individual event. The Karanataka-born, who married another international athlete from Kerala, also won a gold each in the women's 4x400m and mixed 4x400m relay races in the 2018 Asian Games. Rupal Chaudhary She scripted history by becoming the first Indian athlete to win two medals -- silver in women's 4x400m relay and bronze in the individual 400m -- at the World U20 Athletics Championship in 2022 in Colombia. The 19-year-old hails from a family of modest means. Her father is a small farmer in Shahpur Jainpur village in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut district. As the closest stadium to her base -- Meerut -- does not have suitable synthetic tracks for training, she would endure a two-hour journey to Delhi for two days ever week to train. She became the second Indian to win a medal in the women's 400m after Hima Das' historic gold in the 2018 edition of the championships in Finland. Jyothika Dandi Sri Hyderabad-based Jyothika, who ran the second leg on Monday, took to sports to fulfil the dreams of her father who wanted his daughter to feature in the Olympics. The 23-year-old is quite close to it, though the final selection of the relay team rests in the hands of the Athletics Federation of India. She was part of the Indian women's 4x400m team that won a bronze in the Asian Championships last year. She won a 400m gold in the National Open Championships in and a silver in Goa National Games last year. Subha Venkatesan The 24-year-old from Trichy in Tamil Nadu is the daughter of a construction worker and a homemaker and she took to sports on the insistence of her maternal grandfather who works in the police department. Trained initially at the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu's (SDAT) Centre of Chennai, Subha went on to win medals in national meets before she became part of the women's 4x400m relay team that won a silver in the 2018 Asian Junior Championships. Muhammed Anas The 29-year-old Anas is the most well-known men's quarter-miler in the country and the national record holder. Already a two-time Olympian, Anas has won medals at the Asian Games, Asian Championships and 2016 he became is only the third Indian quarter-miler (individual 400m) to participate at the Olympics after KM Binu and Milkha Singh. He was a part of the Indian men's 4x400m and mixed 4x400m relays in Tokyo Olympics. He was also part of the men's 4x400m team that broke the Asian record in the World Championships last year and won the gold medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou. Anas hails from Nilamel village in Kerala and his father Yahiya was a state-level athlete. Anas has often stated that he became interested in running after seeing Jamaican legend Usain Bolt dashing down the track in the 2008 Olympics. He was a long jump champion at his school, but shifted to track on the advice of coaches. At the 2016 senior nationals, Anas clinched the 400m silver in his first attempt and broke the 46-second barrier at the Indian Grand Prix and Federation Cups that year for the first time. Muhammed Ajmal Variyathodi Born in Palakkad, Kerala, Muhammed Ajmal was a football player just like many youngsters in his state. He participated at the U-19 state level football tournaments until his coach recommended a shift to running. He was a 100m sprinter first and then began competing in 400m. Amoj Jacob Born in Kerala but brought up in New Delhi, Jacob's sporting journey began during his time at St. Xavier's School in Rohini, when his coach suggested that he try becoming a sprinter. The 25-year-old was initially interested in football. His mother is a nurse at a Delhi hospital. He was part of the gold winning 4x400m relay team at the 2017 Asian Championships in Bhubaneswar, besides winning the Hangzhou Asian Games gold in the same event. Arokia Rajiv Hailing from a village near Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, athletics runs in Arokia's blood as his father Y Soundararajan was a state level sprinter and long jumper. Arokia's father Soundararajan was a bus driver while his mother a daily wager. The 32-year-old Armyman was part of the gold-winning 4x400m mixed relay team and he settled for a silver medal in the men's 4x400m relay at the 2018 Asian Games held in Jakarta. He was part of the Tokyo Olympics 4x400m relay team that broke the then Asian record. (With agency inputs)
06 May,2024 04:50 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondentThe Indian men's and women's 4x400m relay contingents have clinched spots for the Paris Olympics, finishing second in their respective second-round heats at the World Athletics Relays held on Monday. In the women's event, the quartet comprising Rupal Chaudhary, M R Poovamma, Jyothika Sri Dandi, and Subha Venkatesan clocked 3 minutes and 29.35 seconds to secure second place behind Jamaica (3:28.54) in heat number one, thus earning a ticket to the Games. Subsequently, the men's team composed of Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Muhammed Ajmal, Arokia Rajiv, and Amoj Jacob posted a collective time of 3 minutes and 3.23 seconds to also claim second position in their heat, trailing behind the USA (2:59.95). The top two teams in each of the three heats in the second round secured Olympic berths for the Paris Olympics scheduled from July 26 to August 11. The qualification of the women's 4x400m team for the Olympics came as somewhat of a surprise, given that the focus had primarily been on the men's 4x400m squad, which had set an Asian record in consecutive global events—the Tokyo Olympics and the 2023 World Championships—as well as clinching gold at the 2023 Asian Games. The Indian women's team had finished fifth in the first-round qualifying heat on Sunday, recording a time of 3 minutes and 29.74 seconds. In contrast, the men's team had encountered setbacks in the first-round qualifying heat when Rajesh Ramesh withdrew midway due to cramps. Arokia Rajiv replaced Ramesh and ran the third leg after Anas and Ajmal. Despite the men's team's timing on Monday falling short of their best, the focus remained on securing Olympic qualification. The Indian men's team had previously set an Asian record of 3:00.25 at the Tokyo Olympics before improving it to 2:59.05 during the 2023 World Championships. Monday's timing was below their previous record. Also Read: Indian walkers Akshdeep, Priyanka qualify for Paris Olympics in mixed-relay India had even put up a strong challenge against the formidable USA during the heat race at the 2023 Budapest World Championships before settling for second place. Meanwhile, India withdrew from the mixed 4x400m relay second-round heats on Monday due to Ramesh's absence after suffering muscle cramps during the men's 4x400m first-round heat on Sunday. Ramesh had participated in both the mixed 4x400m and men's 4x400m races on Sunday. India had featured in the mixed 4x400m relay at the Tokyo Olympics, where the event made its debut. The Indian women's 4x400m relay team will be making a comeback to the Olympics after missing out in the Tokyo Games. This will mark the eighth appearance for the Indian women's 4x400m team, with their first participation dating back to the 1984 Games. For the men's 4x400m team, this will be their fourth Olympic appearance, with their debut taking place at the 2000 Sydney Games. With this development, India now boasts at least 19 track and field athletes bound for Paris, including defending javelin throw champion Neeraj Chopra, among others. The athletics events at the Games are set to commence on August 1. A total of 70 teams have qualified for relay events at the Paris Olympics following two days of thrilling action at the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas. Fourteen teams in each of the five disciplines contested in Nassau—the women's and men's 4x100m and 4x400m relays, along with the mixed 4x400m—secured automatic berths for Paris. The first 40 qualified teams—eight in each of the five relay events—were confirmed on Sunday, with the final 30 teams securing qualification on Monday, following a second round of Olympic qualifying for teams that missed out on the first day.
06 May,2024 03:54 PM IST | Nassau | mid-day online correspondentWestern Railway notched up back-to-back big wins in the initial rounds of the Joe Fernandis Memorial Rink Hockey tournament at Astro Park, Bandra recently. The railway men first beat India Rush 6-0 with Rajin Kandulna scoring a brace and Harish Shindgi, Shubham Singh, Pankaj Singh and Ankit netting one each. Also Read: Shuttler Chari stuns top seed Lad to enter final WR then routed Hockey Navi Mumbai by a similar score with Darshan Gawkar, Thoiba Meite, Rohan Patil, Pankaj, Ankit and Rajin scoring one each. In another tie, Hockey Astrengung beat Don Bosco Academy 3-1. Talib scored twice while Aditya got one. Sahil scored for Bosco. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
06 May,2024 08:20 AM IST | Mumbai | AgenciesNikhil Chari upset top seed Gautam Lad in three games to set up a title clash with Rajan Samant, who was also taken the distance by Jitesh Padukone in the men’s singles 45 semi-finals of the GD Birla Memorial Masters Memorial Badminton Tournament at Bombay Gymkhana on Sunday. Also Read: 1 week, 3 games, 9 points and we’ll be champs: Pep The Unidoubles title clash with be an all Bombay Gym affair, with the top seeded pairing of Naheed Divecha and Shailesh Daga taking on second seeds Ayaz Bilawal and Gautam Ashra. While Divecha-Daga got the better of Camille Seth and Mahesh Aras 21-16, 21-14, Bilawala and Ashra defeated Anand Vithalkar and Priya Ambekar 21-10, 21-8. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
06 May,2024 08:17 AM IST | Mumbai | AgenciesRed Bull’s Max Verstappen continued his domination of Formula One, taking pole position for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix after clinching the sprint race earlier on Saturday. Also Read: AICF plans to have its own ‘Super tournament’ The reigning world champion and championship leader, who has won four out of five Grand Prix races this season, secured his seventh straight pole position with another dominant drive. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, whose fastest lap was 0.141 seconds behind Verstappen, will start second with his teammate Carlos Sainz in third place and Verstappen’s Red Bull partner Sergio Perez fourth. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
06 May,2024 08:11 AM IST | Miami Gardens | AFPAll India Chess Federation (AICF) plans to host more international tournaments in India to ensure its top players get enough world class competitions, its president Nitin Narang (left) said on Sunday. Also Read: Madrid Open: Swiatek finds Nadal inspiration to win title Narang said since all the top players in the country cannot get the opportunity to play in every big tournament every year, the AICF will soon start its own international ‘Super Tournament’, though he did not divulge the details. “It [Super Tournament] will have a reservation of a certain number of Indian players, while we will also be inviting overseas players to participate, thus allowing these players to get the same amount of exposure with less expenditure,” said Narang. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
06 May,2024 08:08 AM IST | Chennai | PTITop-ranked Iga Swiatek avenged her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid final by defeating the World No. 2 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) to clinch her first title in the Spanish capital after a gruelling three-hour 11-minute battle on Saturday. The Pole, 22, drew inspiration from Rafael Nadal, and his ability to step up mentally when it mattered the most. Also Read: Mumbai’s Cup of joy! “One thing that came through my mind was that I think Rafa had a couple of matches like that. I remember exactly when he was playing [Daniil] Medvedev in Australia [Open final in 2022] and it clicked for him. He also struggled, was tense and I think stressed. That kind of gave me hope that maybe it will click, even after two hours.” This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
06 May,2024 08:05 AM IST | Madrid | AFPChina completed a Thomas and Uber Cups double Sunday as both men's and women's teams beat Indonesia to win their respective world team championship finals in Chengdu. The men, who won 3-1, lifted China's first Thomas Cup since they beat Japan in 2018 -- and their 11th in all. But it meant agony again for 14-time winners Indonesia, who lost their second successive final after falling to India two years ago in Bangkok. In the women's event, Indonesia had earlier been powerless to prevent a flawless China lifting the Uber Cup for a record-extending 16th time with a 3-0 victory. The next most successful women's nation are Japan, who have won the Uber Cup six times. He Bingjiao's 10-21, 21-15, 21-17 victory against Ester Nurumi Tri Wardoyo completed a perfect 24-0 tournament match record for China's women. They regained the title they lost to South Korea two years ago in Thailand. In the night session, world number two Shi Yuqi got China's men off to a fast start by destroying seventh-ranked Anthony Ginting 21-17, 21-6 in 43 hugely impressive minutes. The pivotal moments came in the first doubles as Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang edged an epic to beat Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto 21-18, 17-21, 21-17 in a 64-minute thriller. The Chinese pair fought back time and again after trailing 10-4 in the opening game, 6-3 in the second and 8-4 in the third in a gutsy display. Also Read: Indian teams make positive starts in Thomas and Uber Cup World number three Jonatan Christie gave Indonesia some hope when he beat sixth-ranked Li Shifeng 21-16, 15-21, 21-17 in 1hr 17min of see-saw action to extend the final. But Indonesia's chances were snuffed out when He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu ran away with the second doubles 21-11, 21-15 in just 37 minutes to beat Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and Bagas Maulana and seal the trophy. Earlier the outranked Indonesian women's slim chances had hinged on Gregoria Mariska Tunjung breaking through in the opening singles against Chen Yufei. But Chen never allowed her opponent into the contest in a comprehensive 21-7, 21-16 win in just 38 minutes. "I didn't feel that comfortable although I have played such matches before," said Chen. "I still feel stressed, and maybe my opponent was. I always feel pressured in finals. "I have lost to her before. What I did was watch a lot of matches that I'd lost to her. It's not going to help if I only watch matches that I won." Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan did not give Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti and Ribka Sugiarto a sniff in a 39-minute doubles demolition. "The scariest thing is when people think you should win," said Chen Qingchen. "Things become different when you assume you can win. The only thing we need to do is prepare and be humble." Their 21-11, 21-8 canter set up He for the Cup-winning victory in the second singles. "During the last three years we experienced failures, and I'm happy that we could regain the title," said He. (With agency inputs)
05 May,2024 08:56 PM IST | Chengdu | mid-day online correspondentBajrang Punia has been handed a provisional suspension for refusing to give his sample for dope test during recent trials and the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) is furious that NADA kept it "in dark" on the development and is planning to write to World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on the matter. Bajrang was handed a provisional suspension on April 23 by National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) and asked to send his reply by May 7 to avoid further disciplinary action. The trials to pick the men's national team for the Asian Olympic Qualifiers in Bishkek were held in Sonepat on March 10 and Bajrang had walked off the venue without providing his urine sample after losing his bout. Reacting to his suspension, Bajrang said he never refused to provide his sample to NADA officials. "I want to clarify that I never refused to give my sample to NADA officials. I requested them to first answer me as to what action they took on the expired kit they brought to take my sample and then take my dope test," Bajrang wrote on X. "My lawyer Vidush Singhania will reply to this letter," he wrote further. If Bajrang fails to come out clean with his reply, he will be out of the race for Paris Olympic Qualification. Also Read: SAI to Bajrang Punia: Attend Worlds trials or give fitness certificate Meanwhile, WFI President Sanjay Singh expressed his surprise that NADA did not inform them about the suspension. "It's really surprising that NADA did not keep us in loop while suspending Bajrang. I had a meeting with NADA DG and other officials on April 25 and this matter was not raised in that meeting," Sanjay told PTI. "They keep communicating with us on matters such as whereabout clause requirements, long list (for Paris Olympics) and so on. Even we had a discussion about the recent Federation Cup, where they sent officials to collect samples from the winners. But they did not let us know about this suspension of Bajrang Punia. I called NADA officials this morning and they had no answer to my query. Now, I plan to write to NADA and also inform WADA about this," he said. It was reported that Vinesh Phogat had also initially refused to provide her sample after she won the women's 50kg trials in Patiala. "We were not informed by anyone whose samples were taken after trials (in Sonepat and Patiala) and what came out of those samples. Just imagine if Bajrang had come to compete in the Federation Cup. We would have allowed him because we had no clue that he had been suspended," the WFI chief added. Meanwhile, Bhupender Singh Bajwa, who was the head of the dissolved ad-hoc panel, told PTI they also have no communication regarding the suspension of Bajrang, the Tokyo Games bronze medallist. "I have got the mail checked. We have no such communication. We got a mail on April 18 about a warning to Bajrang but the April 23 communication is not with us. I don't know to which email ID they sent it," Bajwa said. The World Qualifiers in Turkey from May 9 is the last chance for Indian wrestlers to lock quotas for the Summer Olympics. So far, four Indian women wrestlers have qualified for the biggest sporting event -- Vinesh Phogat (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg), Anshu Malik (57kg) and Reetika Hooda (76kg). (With agency inputs)
05 May,2024 03:43 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondentDefender Rohit has been named captain of the Indian junior men’s hockey team, with Shardanand Tiwari as his deputy in a 20-member squad which will tour Europe from May 20-29. Also Read: India boxers assured of record 43 medals India will play five matches across three nations—Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands—during the tour, as part of Hockey India’s initiative to help the team gain exposure and experience. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 May,2024 08:05 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIAkash Gorkha, Vishvanath Suresh, Nikhil and Preet Malik advanced to the U-22 men’s finals as Indian boxers confirmed an unprecedented 43 medals across categories at the ASBC Asian U-22 & Youth Boxing Championships here on Saturday. Senior national champion Akash extended his dominating run in the 60kg category with a 5-0 win over Ilyasov Sayat of Uzbekistan in the semi-finals. Also Read: Verstappen takes sprint pole Reigning youth world champion Vishvanath (48kg) won 5-2 against Baricuatro Bryan of Philippines after the bout was reviewed. The other two semi-finalists, Nikhil (57kg) and Preet (67kg) also won their bouts with a similar 5-2 scoreline after a review against Mongolia’s Dorjnyambuu Ganbold and Almaz Orozbekov of Kyrgyzstan respectively. Meanwhile, it was a heartbreak for M Jadumani Singh (51kg), Ajay Kumar (63.5kg), Ankush (71kg), Dhruv Singh (80kg), Jugnoo (86kg) and Yuvraj (92kg) as they ended their campaigns with bronze medals following their losses in the U-22 semis. In the youth women’s semi-finals played on Friday night, reigning junior world champion Nisha (52kg) and Asian youth champion Nikita Chand (60kg) along with five other boxers entered the finals. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 May,2024 08:02 AM IST | Astana (Kazakhstan) | PTIADVERTISEMENT
