Annu Rani creates national record to qualify for Asian and World Championships
26-year-old javelin thrower Annu Rani speared a distance of 62.34m to see herself qualify for the World and the Asian Championships, both of which would be held in Doha in coming months. Kumari Sharmila won the silver with a 54.98m throw, while Rupinder Kaur came was third with an effort of 53.90m.
This was a big moment for an inconsistent Rani, who has been on the athletics circuit for quite some time but was never able to reach her true potential. After winning bronze medals in the 2014 Asian Games and the 2017 Asian Championships, when she also created the then national record of 61.86m, she could only reach an average 57.37m in 2018.
After not getting selected in the 2018 Asian Games, she eventually got a ‘backdoor’ entry following good performances in the Inter-Railway Meet. However, she messed things up with a 53.93m throw coming sixth in the process.
“Yes, you can say there has been a sort of mental block as I was not being able to do my best during competition. I was doing well during practice but it was not getting translated on the field. I focused a lot on this metal aspect and it came off good today,” Rani said, reported PTI.
However, it wasn’t the case on Sunday, the penultimate day of the Federation Cup National Senior Athletics Championships in Patiala. Representing Uttar Pradesh Rani managed to get a distance of 62.34m, which was nearly half a metre more than her previous national record of 61.86m in 2017. Her distance was better than the qualifying standard of 61.50m for the World Championships, which has been scheduled to be held in September-October later this year. She has also qualified for the Asian Championships in the process where the Athletics Federation of India has set a qualifying standard of 58m.
After Rani finished Haryana’s Kumari Sharmila and Punjab’s Rupinder Kaur. Adivasi athlete Iavit Murali Kumar also created headlines in the men’s 10000m race to qualify for the Asian Championships, by crossing the finish line in 29.21.99 to win his second gold medal of the meet. He bettered the Asian Championships qualification mark of 29 minutes 50 seconds.
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