Annu Rani, Animesh Kujur light up Indian Continental tour, cricketer-turned-javelin thrower Sri Lankan packs a surprise punch

On August 10, India hosted their first-ever Continental Tour Bronze Meet, and the Bhubaneswar crowd rose to the occasion in spectacular fashion. The Kalinga Stadium was jam-packed with passionate fans, whose loud cheers created an electrifying atmosphere. Interestingly, the sprinters had to restart their race three times, as they were unable to hear the starter’s signal because of the overwhelming noise from the stands.

The Indian athletes, in turn, did not disappoint as they put on a magnificent show that made brought the audience on their feet. The crowd, which consisted of the majority of school and college students from over ten local institutions, enjoyed a festive and memorable experience at this first-of-its-kind event in the country.

India’s 400m specialist Vishal TK started things nicely, clocking 45.72 seconds to claim the gold medal,  a performance just shy of his personal best of 45.57 set earlier this year in South Korea.

ALSO READ: 'Sir, when you won the 1983 World Cup, we were not even born': Mohammed Siraj applauds India legend at autobiography launch

Javelin throw results 

Following Vishal’s performance, javelin star Annu Rani took centrestage. Still riding high from her 62.59m throw in Poland — her first 60+ metre mark in over a year — Annu dominated the women’s javelin in Bhubaneswar with a best attempt of 62.01m within her first three throws. The effort will undoubtedly boost the confidence of the 32-year-old, who has been working her way back from a dip in form.

While Rani lit up the women’s event, the men’s javelin didn’t go as expected for the Indian contingent. Rising Indian star Sachin Yadav, who was the favourite going into the competition, was stunned by Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage. The cricketer-turned-javelin thrower delivered a stunning performance, throwing 86.50 metre — over two metre farther than his previous best — to secure gold and direct qualification for the World Championships in Tokyo. Maharashtra’s 20-year-old Shivam Lokhare took silver with a throw of 80.73m.

ALSO READ: 'I would've convinced Mukesh Ambani and Bumrah to miss IPL for England series': India legend weighs in on pacer's workload debate

Local boy lives up to expectations

Although the javelin was considered  as the marquee event, the loudest roars of the evening came in the final hour, when local favourite Animesh Kujur stepped on the track for the men’s 200m final. Animesh delivered a blistering run, clocking 20.77 seconds to claim gold with ease. He celebrated his win with a signature Usain Bolt pose — a fitting tribute to his Jamaican idol.

Notably, Animesh had earlier opted out of the 100m event, not finishing his heat in the morning. While no official reason was revealed, it is believed that he chose to skip the additional rounds to avoid the physical toll of competing multiple times in the Bhubaneswar heat after a demanding season.

Animesh is scheduled to compete in one more domestic event this season, the Inter-State Championship — before heading to the World Championships in Tokyo.

Murali takes big strides

India’s star long jumper Murali Sreeshankar continued his outstanding run, since his return to the game from injury.  After being sidelined for 650 days, Sreeshankar had made his highly anticipated return in Pune last month with a clear jump of 8.05m. On Sunday, the star athlete went a step further, improving his season’s best with a jump of 8.13m. 

CONTINENTAL TOUR: ALL RESULTS

Men’s Results
100m:
Muhammad Azeem Bin (Malaysia) – 10.35 seconds
Chamod M Yodhasing (Sri Lanka) – 10.43 seconds
Danish Iftikhar (Malaysia) – 10.50 seconds
200m:
Animesh Kujur (Odisha – IND) – 20.77 seconds
KO Seunghwan (Korea) – 20.95 seconds
Raguk Kumar G (Tamil Nadu – IND) – 21.17 seconds
400m:
Vishal TK (NCOE Trivandrum – IND) – 45.72 seconds
Amoj Jacob (NCOE Trivandrum – IND) – 45.86 seconds
Santhosh Kumar T (Tamil Nadu – IND) – 46.89 seconds
800m:
Mohammad Afsal (Air Force – IND) – 1:46.60
Prakash Gadade (Maharashtra – IND) – 1:47.14
Krishan Kumar (Haryana – IND) – 1:48.00
5000m:
Waberi Igueh Houssein (Djibouti) – 14:05.36
Abhishek Pal (Railway – IND) – 14:10.60
Sawan Barwal (Army – IND) – 14:13.41
Triple Jump:
Abdulla Aboobacker (Air Force – IND) – 16.53m
Karthik Unnikrishnan (Air Force – IND) – 16.42m
Gailey V (Tamil Nadu – IND) – 16.26m
Long Jump:
Murali Sreeshankar (JSW – IND) – 8.13m
Shahnavaz Khan (Uttar Pradesh – IND) – 8.04m
Lokesh Sathyanathan (Karnataka – IND) – 7.85m
Javelin Throw:
Rumesh Tharanga P (Sri Lanka) – 86.50m
Shivam Lohakare (Maharashtra – IND) – 80.73m
Sumedha J Ranasinghe (Sri Lanka) – 80.65m
4x400m Relay:
Sri Lanka – 3:00.22
India A (Santhosh Kumar T, Vishal TK, Amoj Jacob, D Choudhary) – 3:08.37
Iraq – 3:08.74
Women’s Results
100m:
Abinaya Rajarajan (NCOE Trivandrum – IND) – 11.57 seconds
Sneha SS (Karnataka – IND) – 11.70 seconds
Nithya Gandhe (Telangana – IND) – 11.70 seconds
200m:
Angel Silvia M (NCOE Bengaluru – IND) – 23.95 seconds
Nithya Gandhe (Telangana – IND) – 24.11 seconds
Unnathi Aiyappa (Karnataka – IND) – 24.56 seconds
400m:
Vijaykumari GK (Karnataka – IND) – 53.40 seconds
Devyaniba Zala (Gujarat – IND) – 53.87 seconds
Louise Evans (Great Britain) – 54.28 seconds
800m:
Amandeep Kaur (Punjab – IND) – 2:04.31
Huidrom B (IOCL – IND) – 2:06.96
Thota Sankeertana (Chhattisgarh – IND) – 2:07.17
1500m:
Pooja (Haryana – IND) – 4:15.13
Lili Das (Uttar Pradesh – IND) – 4:17.66
Amandeep Kaur (Punjab – IND) – 4:27.14
100m Hurdles:
Pragyan Prashanti Sahu (Odisha – IND) – 13.74 seconds
Nandhini K (Tamil Nadu – IND) – 13.80 seconds
Anjali C (Kerala – IND) – 14.00 seconds
Javelin Throw:
Annu Rani (Uttar Pradesh – IND) – 62.01m
Hatarabag Lekamalage (Sri Lanka) – 56.27m
Deepika (Haryana – IND) – 54.20m
Long Jump:
Shaili Singh (Uttar Pradesh – IND) – 6.28m
Bhavani Yadav (Railway – IND) – 6.13m
Sandra Babu (JSW – IND) – 6.10m