National record holder Tejaswin Shankar qualified for the men’s high jump final with 2.20m while Avantika Narale clocked a personal best 11.63s (previous best 11.81) and made the women’s 100m semifinal as athletics began at the World University Games in Chengdu on Tuesday. Avantika was second in her heats.
Meanwhile Basanti Kumari (36:17.40s) finished 10th in the women’s 10,000m — one of the two finals on Tuesday — while Poonam Sonune was 12th (37:12.77s).
Shiksha was 11th (14.48m) in the women’s shot put final which was won by China’s Song Jiayuan (18.56m).
B. Bhavani Yadav entered the women’s long jump final after going past six metres for the first time in her life (6.12m) while Manisha Merel, who has a personal best of 6.22m, could only manage 5.81 and crashed out in the qualification round.
Amlan Borgohain (personal best 10.25s, season best 10.49) bowed out of the men’s 100m after finishing third in his first round heats in 10.64m.
The quartermilers failed to make an impact with Nitin Kumar (48.31s) and Prasanth Shetty (49.01) in the men’s section and Rashdeep Kaur (56.52s) and Neha (disqualified) in women’s falling in the first round.
Incidentally, the country’s fastest male and female varsity quartermilers — R. Arul and Himanshi Malik — were not in the team.
Robinson Sekar (15.31) and Vaisakh Ajikumar (no mark) also failed to move past the qualification round in men’s triple jump.
The results (winners and Indian performances in final):
Women: 10,000m: 1. Yuyu Xia (Chn) 33:48.35s; 10. Basanti Kumari (Ind) 36:17.40), 12. Poonam Sonune (Ind) 37:12.77.
Shot put: 1. Song Jiayuan (Chn) 18.56; 11. Shiksha (Ind) 14.48.