Murali Sreeshankar bags long jump gold at Kallithea athletics meet
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Murali Sreeshankar, a Tokyo Olympian, clinched the long jump event at the 12th International Jumping Meeting in Kallithea, Greece, on Wednesday with a jump of 8.31m, which put him ahead of Sweden's Thobias Montle. Jeswin Aldrin, meanwhile, finished fifth in a meet in Huelva, Spain.
In the 10-man contest, Murali Sreeshankar was followed by Sweden's Thobias Montler, who took silver with an 8.27m leap, and France's Jules Pommery, who took bronze with an 8.17m performance. Only the top three jumpers broke the eight-meter barrier. Sreeshankar established the national record in the long jump last month with an 8.36m leap.
On the other hand, Jeswin Aldrin finished sixth in the 17th Iberoamerican Meeting in Huelva, Spain, by clearing 7.69 meters. The top three men in the seven-man field were Croatian Filip Pravdiva (7.91m), Uruguayan Emiliano Lasa (7.82m), and Peruvian José Luis Mandros (7.77m). Back home, both Jeswin Aldrin and Murali Sreeshankar have had a successful season. Murali won gold at the India Open Jumps tournament, while Jeswin Aldrin won the Indian Grand Prix 1.
Last month, Jeswin Aldrin and Murali Sreeshankar broke the World Athletics Championships 2022 qualifying standards (8.22m) in the Federation Cup. At the Commonwealth Games, which will be contested in Birmingham from July 28 to August 8, the two Indian competitors are the country's strongest medal possibilities in the men's long jump event.
Over the previous two weeks, Indian sportsmen have been training and competing in Europe. Priya Mohan of India won the 400m gold medal at a competition in Geneva, Switzerland, over the weekend, while Jyothi Yarraji of India broke the women's national 100m hurdles record in Loughborough, England.
