Lacklustre Tintu grabs third spot

India’s Tintu Luka finished an unimpressive third in the women’s 800 metres in the Primo Nebiolo Memorial Meeting in Turin, Italy, on Friday.

In a slow race, Tintu clocked 2:02.71 to finish behind Cuban Yuneisy Santiusty (2:00.93) and Marta Milani (2:02.65) of Italy.

The Indian record holder, who has already qualified for the Olympic Games, was targetting a time under two minutes but could not succeed in her endeavour, leaving both the athlete and her coach P T Usha disappointed.

Tintu had timed 2:01.09 in her season-opener in the Diamond League meeting in Doha last month.

Tintu and Usha had a harrowing time reaching Turin, with their luggage, including Luka’s spikes, getting misplaced en route. Travelling via Istanbul, the duo reached Turin on Thursday and had to endure a tense wait before the luggage was traced and handed to them on Friday.