Yadav’s historic javelin throw
Ashish Yadav has secured a silver medal in the men’s javelin throw at the World Athletics U20 Championships, marking a significant achievement for India. His performance makes him only the second Indian to win a medal in this event at the global junior competition. Yadav’s best throw measured 74.09m, which he achieved during his third attempt.
This silver medal comes a decade after Neeraj Chopra‘s historic gold in the same event. Chopra, a two-time Olympic medallist, won gold in 2016 in Bydgoszcz, Poland, with a throw of 86.48m, setting a world junior record that still stands. Yadav’s accomplishment opens India’s medal account at the championships.
The gold medal in the men’s javelin throw went to Jan-Hendrik Heymans of South Africa, who recorded an 80.50m throw on his sixth and final attempt. This throw also became the season’s U20 world-leading effort. Dominica’s Addison James secured the bronze medal with a throw of 73.89m.
Another Indian athlete, T Dharanidharan, also competed in the men’s javelin throw finals, finishing sixth with a best throw of 72.35m. Yadav’s silver medal is particularly noteworthy for India’s athletics programme, especially given the rise of javelin as a strong event, inspired by Chopra’s success.
Other Indian performances
Beyond the javelin event, Indian athletes delivered several other notable performances at the championships. Mohommed Ashfaq broke the men’s U20 national record in the 400m. The 19-year-old clocked 45.81 seconds in his heat, finishing second behind USA’s Jayden DeLeon, who recorded 45.63s. Ashfaq’s time was an improvement on his previous national record of 46.05 seconds, set earlier this year.
Ashfaq qualified for the semifinals and later finished eighth in the finals, clocking 46.20 seconds. In the 400m finals, American Jayden Deleon won gold with a championships record time of 44.47 seconds, while compatriot Quincy Wilson took silver with 44.62 seconds. South Africa’s Leendert Koekemoer secured the bronze with a time of 44.96 seconds.
In the women’s high jump, Pooja Singh qualified for the final round by clearing 1.79m. All 14 athletes across two qualification groups who managed to clear 1.79m were awarded places in the final. The 19-year-old Pooja holds the national senior record of 1.93m.
In the men’s long jump, both Shahnavaz Khan and Jithin Arjuna advanced to the finals after the qualification round. Shahnavaz finished fourth in qualification Group A and fifth overall with a 7.73m jump in his third and final attempt. Jithin also secured a spot in the finals, finishing 12th overall with a 7.57m jump in his third and final attempt.
Italy’s Daniele Inzoli was the only athlete across the two qualification groups to breach the automatic qualification distance of 8m, achieving an effort of 8.15m. In women’s discus, 18-year-old Amanat Kamboj finished sixth in the final with a personal best of 53.24m. China’s Su Yixin won gold with 61.06m, while USA’s Jaslene Massey and Cyprus’ Marina Hadjicosta took silver and bronze respectively.
Basant also progressed to the men’s high jump final after clearing 2.14m. However, Poonam did not qualify for the women’s javelin final, finishing eighth in her qualification group and 13th overall with a best throw of 48.81m. Several other Indian athletes missed out on qualification across shot put, hurdles, and triple jump events.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
