Gowda, Tintu to spearhead Indian challenge at World C'ships

Commonwealth Games gold medal winner Vikas Gowda and ace athlete Tintu Luka will lead the Indian challenge at the IAAF World Championships, where the country will present competition in nine disciplines.

The Athletics Federation of India has announced a 17-member Indian team for the prestigious event, to be held in Beijing from August 22-30.

The selection of the Indian team, comprising 10 women and 7 men, was based on the qualification standard set by the IAAF for all the events, which includes the individual as well as relay events.

The Indian athletes had qualified for 10 events but Rajinder Singh who made the grades in the men's javelin throw event, will not be able to make it to Beijing due to an injury he picked up at the Asian Grand Prix Series in Thailand earlier in June."He is currently undergoing medical tests for his recovery programme," a press release stated.

The Indian team for the IAAF World Championships will be leaving in batches from different cities as per the itinerary of their events to reduce the effect of exertion and better recovery from travel.

Gowda will reach Beijing directly from his training centre in the US, while Asian champion in shot put, Inderjeet Singh, the reigning Asian Games champion in women's 4x400m relay members, 800m Asian champion and Asian Games medallist Tintu Luka (800m) have their scheduled departure from Delhi.

The middle and long distance athletes, OP Jaisha, Sudha Singh (marathon) and Lalita Shivaji Babar (3000m steeplechase and marathon) will be leaving from Coimbatore which is closer to their high-altitude training centre in Ooty.

The two batches of race walkers in 20km and 50km events for both men and women will depart from Delhi and Bangalore respectively.

The famous Bird's nest Stadium, best remembered as the centrepiece of 2008 Olympic Games, is expected to witness around 2,000 athletes from more than 207 countries competing, out of IAAF's 214 member federations.