IAAF has made qualifications tougher for Olympics, says Jinson Johnson

Jinson Johnson is an athlete who has brought laurels for the country in various events in his category of 800m and 1500m running. The Kerala athlete is also the national record holder in 1500m race as he finished fifth at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games last year by clocking 3:37.86.

Johnson, however, is now aiming to get a ticket for the upcoming Olympics to be held in Tokyo next year. The middle-distance runner is confident of making it into the sporting extravaganza but has said that the IAAF has made the qualification more difficult this time around.

“The qualification mark is set at 3:35 for Tokyo but the gold at Rio came in 3:50. IAAF has made qualifications tougher. Nevertheless, for several years I have been doing things which were not done previously by my compatriots. I can spring surprises,” Johnson told PTI.

Johnson, who had won a bronze medal at the 22nd edition of the Asian Championships in 2017 in 800m, had qualified for both 800m and 1500m race for the 23rd edition this year. However, the 28-year-old athlete was ruled out due to an injury in the 800m race and couldn’t take part in the 1500m one.

“These are ups and downs of the sport. I have always performed well in international competitions. Though I did not get any medal in 2018 Commonwealth Games, I got the national record in 1500m,” the middle distance runner explained.