Indian Athletics – News – 20th Asian Athletics Championships – India’s Vikas Gowda GOLD -/ By Ram. Murali Krishnan /-

Pune, India – 4 July 2013 – India’s Vikas Gowda finally accomplished his goal of becoming an Asian champion on the eve of his 31st birthday, as the second day in 20th Asian Athletics Championships at Shiv Chhatrapathi Sports Complex here saw the athletes from hosts won a medal each on gold, silver and bronze plates. 

Vikas, after winning two silver medals in 2005 and 2011, was fourth-time lucky after a fourth place finish in 2007.   The news that defending champion Ehsan Hadadi of Iran, who had four successive gold medals in discus throw from 2005 to 2011, stayed off from the Pune championships assured the top spot for the Indian.  However the appearance of two other Iranian brothers, Mahmoud and Mohammad Samimi, provided some anticipated challenge. 

After opening with 58.64m, Gowda made a foul in the second round and went on to snatch the first rank in the next with 61.83 and a whooping 64.90m put him an absolute leader, gold medallist and reaffirms his trip to the World championships in Moscow.  Vikas already made the qualification with his season’s best 65.82m achieved in Mesa, Arizona, in the United States this April.

Mohammad Samimi (61.93) took the silver while the bronze went to Ahmed Mohammed Dheeb of Qatar in 60.82m.  The second Iranian in the fray, Mahmoud Samimi, finished fourth with 60.24m.

Bingtian and Al-Masrahi retained titles

Su Bingtain of China successfully defends his title in the marquee event of the day, men’s 100m, clocking 10.17 secs.  Samuel Francis (Qatar), the Asian record-holder, settled with a silver in 10.27s while the bronze medal went to Barakat Al-Harthi from Bahrain (10.30).

In a similar passion, Yousef Ahmed Al-Masrahi of Saudi Arabia won his second consecutive gold in the 400m with a brilliant 45.08 clocking well ahead of fancied Bahraini quarter-miler Ali Khamis (45.65) and Japan’s Yuzo Kanemaru (45.95).

Wei Yongli made it a memorable day for China by taking the women’s sprint title in 11.29 secs.  Chisato Fukushima of Japan (11.53) and Tao Yujia of China (11.63) filled the minor places on the podium. 

 It was the fourth time that China made that “unique double” of winning the gold medals in 100m in both men and women divisions on the same championships.  Earlier Zheng Chen and Zhang Caihua (1989), Lin Wei and Cui Dangfeng (1995), Zhou Wei and Yan Jiankui (1998) have been achieved this honour.

 Poovamma and Ratiram brought other medals to India

Woman quarter-miler M.R. Poovamma, running on a big stage for the first time, settled with a silver medal in 400m by clocking 53.37 secs as Zho Yanmin increased China’s medal tally with another gold in that event (52.49).  Gretta Taslakian from Lebanon piped Indian Anu Mariam Jose, 53.43 to 53.49, for the bronze.

Indian long distance runners led the race on the initial stages of men’s 10000m.  At the end Bahraini duo Alemu Bekele (28:47.26) and Bilisuma Shugi (28:58.67) were 1-2 when Ratiram Saini (29:35.42) sprinted out fellow Indian Kheta Ram (29:35.72) for the bronze.  

National record-holder Sahana Kumari disappoints the fans with a fourth place finish in high jump.  She could manage to clear only 1.86m, as against her PB of 1.92m, as Uzbekistan’s Nadia Dusanova became the first athlete from her country to win the event in 1.90m.  Dusanova’s teammate and pre-event favourite Svetlana Radzivil pockets the silver after sailed over 1.88m, the same height the bronze medallist Marina Aitova also achieved on Thursday evening.

As expectedly Dmitry Karpov, the Kazakh decathlete who is a bronze medallist in the 2004 Athens Olympics as well as bagged two bronze medals in the World championships, went home with the gold medal garnered 8037 points—a new championship record.  However he narrowly missed the Indian all-comers’ record of 8070 points held by Canada’s Jamie Adjetey-Nelson.

Indian hurdlers Siddhanth Thingalaya (men’s 110m hurdles), Gayathry and Hemasree (women’s 100m hurdles) advanced to tomorrow’s finals.

 -/ Ram. Murali Krishnan /-