2021 Tokyo Olympics | Annu Rani creates national record but fails to earn Tokyo berth

All of India’s 2021 Tokyo Olympic probables in track and field event have gathered in the Patiala for the Federation Cup Senior National Athletics Championships. Meanwhile, many of them were aiming to book a quota for the mega-event in the same, including javelin thrower Annu Rani, who was representing Uttar Pradesh.

Even though she won the Gold medal in her respective event with a best throw 63. 24m, thus shattering her own national record, yet she failed to breach the 2021 Tokyo Olympics qualification mark. She missed the target by more than half a metre with the cut-off set at 64m. 

Among the other athletes, Assam’s Hima Das clocked 11.63 seconds in the heats of the 100m event, Dutee Chand was a shade better with a timing of 11.51. In the men’s 100m event, Punjab’s Gurindervir Singh scripted a personal best of 10.30 seconds, which was the third-fastest ever sprint by an Indian along with Mohammed Abdul Najeeb Qureshi (2010). 

Only Anil Kumar (10.21) in 2001, followed by Amiya Kumar Mallick (10.26) in 2016, and Sanjeet Singh (10.26) in 2018, have clocked better than Gurindervir.