The quartet of Keerthana S, Neole Anna Cornelio, Jyothika, and Unnathi Aiyappa opened Karnataka’s medal tally in athletics by cruising to gold in the women’s 4x100m relay at the National Games in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, on Sunday.The young sprint squad crossed the finish line in 45.99 seconds, ahead of Kerala, who clocked 47.04 seconds, and Telangana, with a time of 47.58 seconds, securing second and third positions, respectively.After no podium finishes on the opening day, Karnataka added three more medals along with the relay gold.In the women’s javelin throw, Karishma S Sanil (55.55m) secured silver, while state-mate Ramyashree Jain (54.85m) claimed a bronze. The event was won by Haryana’s Jyoti Rakesh (55.55m).High jumper Sudeep contributed another bronze for Karnataka with his effort of 2.08 meters. Aadarsh Ram J of Tamil Nadu (2.14m) won gold, while Swadhin Kumar of Odisha (2.11m) took silver.Yarraji, Shirse ShineIn other highlights of the day, Andhra Pradesh’s Jyothi Yarraji and Maharashtra’s Tejas Shirse won their third successive gold medals at the National Games, both clocking record times.Shirse (men’s 110m hurdles) and Yarraji (women’s 100m hurdles), both national record holders in their respective events, had previously won gold in the 2022 and 2023 editions in Gujarat and Goa.The 25-year-old Yarraji clocked 13.10 seconds, bettering her own National Games record of 13.22 seconds, set in 2023.Moumita Mondal of West Bengal secured silver with a time of 13.36 seconds, while Nithya Ramraj (13.60 seconds) of Tamil Nadu claimed bronze.Results:Men:110m hurdles: Tejas Shirse (Mah) 13.65s, 1; Manav Rajanarayanan (TN) 14.03s, 2; Muhammed Lazan (Ker) 14.23s, 3.400m: Bapi Hansda (Odi) 46.82s, 1; Vikrant Panchal (Har) 46.92s, 2; Manu TS (Ker) 47.08s, 3.4x100m relay: Odisha (39.47) (GR; Old: 39.94, Services, 2011) 1; Tamil Nadu (40.08) 2; Kerala (40.73) 3.High jump: Aadarsh Ram J (TN) 2.14m, 1; Swadhin Kumar (Odi) 2.11m, 2; Sudeep (Kar) 2.08m, 3.Women:100m hurdles: Jyothi Yarraji (AP) 13.10s (GR; Old: 13.22s, Jyothi Yarraji, 2023) 1; Moumita Mondal (WB) 13.36s, 2; Nithya Ramraj (TN) 13.60s, 3.400m: Aishwarya Mishra (Mah) 51.12s (GR; Old: 52.50, A. Mishra, 2022) 1; Vithya Ramraj (TN) 54.43s, 2; Devyaniba Zala (Guj) 54.44s, 3.4x100m relay: Karnataka (Keerthana S, Neole Anna Cornelio, Jyothika, Unnathi Aiyappa) 45.99s, 1; Kerala (47.04s) 2; Telangana (47.58s) 3.Long jump: Moumita Mondal (WB) 6.21m, 1; Sandra Babu (Ker) 6.12m, 2; Deepanshi Singh (UP) 6.11m, 3.Javelin throw: Jyoti Rakesh (Har) 55.55m, 1; Karishma S Sanil (Kar) 55.55m, 2; Ramyashree Jain (Kar) 54.85m, 3.
