The Indian athletes swelled the medals tally even further as steeplechasers Parul Chaudhary and Priti secured the silver and bronze medals in the women's 3000m steeplechase at the Asian Games 2023 on Monday, October 2. Parul clocked 9:27.63 while Priti got a timing of 9:43.32 to win their respective medals.
However, Parul was outpaced by Bahrain's Yavi Winfred Mutile, who set a new Asian Games record with an astounding 9:18.28 seconds, successfully defending her title. Notably, the earlier record was 9:31.36 seconds, set by Jebet Ruth from Bahrain during the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. Although Parul's timing surpassed the previous Games record, it fell short of her personal best of 9:15.31 seconds, which she achieved at the World Championships in Budapest and solidified her place in the forthcoming Paris Olympics.
On the other hand, Priti showcased her prowess by recording a personal best of 9:43.32 seconds, ensuring a bronze for India. She narrowly defeated Bahrain's Mekonen Tigest Getent, who finished just fractions of a second later.
In the women's long jump arena, Ancy Sojan delivered a sterling performance, registering her personal best not once, but twice, leaping 6.63 metres and seizing a silver medal. She was only bested by China's Shiqi Xiong, who claimed gold with a leap of 6.73 metres. Vietnam's Nga Yan Yue marked her position by grabbing the bronze with 6.50 metres. However, India's Shaili Singh couldn't match her competitors and finished in fifth place with a leap of 6.48m.
The relay race witnessed another medal for India, with the quartet of Muhammed Ajmal Variyathodi, Vithya Ramraj, Rajesh Ramesh, and Subha Venkatesan clinching bronze with a time of 3:14.34s. Bahrain and Sri Lanka took the gold and silver respectively.
In the men's 200m, India's hope, Amlan Borgohain, couldn't make a podium finish, securing the sixth position with a time of 20.98 seconds. The gold was clinched by Japan's Koki Ueyama, followed by Saudi Arabia's Mohammed Abdullah Abkar and Chinese Taipei's Yang Chun-Han for silver and bronze, respectively.
As the competition intensifies, the commitment and dedication of these athletes continue to inspire and ignite hope for more victories in the coming days.
