Asian Games 2026: Toor seeks hat-trick as track and field takes centre stage

Star shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor would be gunning for a historic hattrick of gold while the likes of long jumper Murali Sreeshankar and long distance runner Gulveer Singh aim to better the colour of medal they had won last time when India begins its athletics campaign at the Asian Games on ThursdayIndia is one of the athletics powerhouses in Asian Games and the country is expected to preserve that reputation this time also though without superstar javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra who has pulled out due to an injury The 75member Indian athletics team is aiming for 25 to 30 medals It won 29 medals 6 gold 14 silver 9 bronze last time in Hangzhou ChinaOn Thursday triple jumper Asha Ilango will be first up in a medal event involving an Indian followed by Seema in 10000m In the 4x400m mixed relay the other medal event on Thursday India is a contender for a podium finish Sprinters Animesh Kujur and Gurindervir Singh will also run their 100m heat racesIf Toor wins a gold for which he is the favourite he will enter history books as he will become the first Indian track and field athlete to stand on top of podium in three successive Asian Games in a single eventLegendary thrower Parduman Singh Brar won two shot put gold medals in 1954 ad 1958 Asian Games and Toor will go past him if he wins on Thursday Brar though has three gold medals in his name with another in discus throw in 1954 Games The most gold and overall medals by an Indian track and field athlete was won by the legendary PT Usha who has four gold all in 1986 Seoul and seven silver in her nameSreeshankar won a silver in the last Asian Games and the 27yearold would be aiming for a gold this time He has jumped beyond 8m in all the seven competitions he participated this season He arrived in Japan early before the other teammates joined him on September 13 at the University of Tsukuba near Tokyo for an acclimatisation campBut it will not be easy for him though he is the season leader among the Asians with 838m He will have to fight with Yuan Chenlong second in Asian season list with 833m of China and Uzbekistans Anvar Anarov season best 829m China has also fielded Shi Yuhao who won a bronze in the 2022 GamesIndia is also fielding David Solomon SB 822m a last minute addition to the team in place of injured Shahnavaz KhanGulveer has been entered in three events 1500m 5000m and 10000 and he would be looking for at least two medals He had won a 10000m bronze in 2022 Asian Games and holds national records in both 5000m and 10000m In 5000m Gulveer SB 130393 will have to compete with Ethiopianborn defending champion Birhanu Balew of Bahrain It will be a tough proposition for Gulveer second in Asian top list to beat the Bahrain athleteGulveer will also have his task cut out in the 10000m race with Japans Asian leader Mebuki Suzuki 272011 in the fray The Indian is ranked second in the Asian season list with his 272418 performance in JuneSable to run in 3000m steeplechase and 5000mSpotlight will also be on Avinash Sable as he attempts to defend his 3000m steeplechase gold he had won in last Asian Games despite running just one race this season He had a long injury layoff after undergoing an anterior cruciate ligament ACL surgery last year He has also got a lastminute inclusion in 5000m race in which he had won a silver in the last editionA silver winner at the 2022 Asian Games long jumper Ancy Sojan would be hoping to upgrade the medal to gold and she is the Asian leader with her 688m effort in June Despite the absence of Chopra in mens javelin throw India can still win a medal through Rohit Yadav and Yashvir Singh Rohit SB 8768m and Glasgow CWG medallist Yashvir SB 8541m are currently at third and fourth among Asian season leadersThe hot favourite to win the gold is Sri Lankan Rumesh Pathirage who has sent his spear beyond 90m mark thrice this season with 9262m being his best Pakistans Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem is also in fray but he has been struggling with a season best of 8149m National record holder decathlete Tejaswin Shankar will have to be ready for a tough competition against Japans Yuma Maruyama who leads the Asian season chart with 8321 points in the 10event discipline Tejaswin who had pulled out midway high jump competition at the recent Glasgow Commonwealth Games due a recurring knee problem has a personal best of 8057 points which he accumulated in MayCommonwealth Games silver medallist high jumper Sarvesh Kushare is the Asian season leader with his 231m effort in June but he also is carrying a niggle Moreover the high jump field in Asian Games will be top class with multiple Olympic and world medallist Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar in the frayTriple jumper Praveen Chithravel and 100m hurdler Jyothi Yarraji have won a bronze and silver respectively in the last edition of the Asian Games but both had dealt with minor injuries recently Among other medal contenders are quartermiler Vishal TK 3000m steeplechaser Parul Chaudhary Harita Bhadra 200m and Pooja Singh high jumpThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever