JOIN USSilver medals came in a rush for India on the athletics track of the GBK Stadium on Sunday. And shining bright amidst the collection was a rare one in the 100 metres from Dutee Chand.
India last won a 100 metres medal in 1986 Seoul through P T Usha who had retained her silver won in New Delhi 1982. It has been frustrating wait since then and Dutee ended it with a power-packed sprint in the final.
On a night when gold eluded India, Mohammed Anas and Hima Das also surged to silver medal finishes in strong fields in the 400m races, with the latter breaking her national record again. G Lakshmanan then added a bronze to the tally in the 10,000 metres only to be told later that he had been disqualified for stepping outside the track. India lodged a protest but it was rejected.
In the 100m finals, Dutee got off to a good start from lane seven but Hajar Al Khaldi of Bahrain had an even better start. The fighter in Dutee came to the fore as she stayed in the mix even as Edidiong Odiong of Bahrain came on strongly from lane four. Odiong just nosed ahead to take the gold while Dutee dipped well to snatch the silver from China’s Wei Yongli, one of the favourites.
Odiong did a jig of delight, having timed 11.30 seconds for the gold. Dutee, a little more reserved, flashed a smile brighter than the floodlights as silver was assured for her at 11.32. Yongli was one-hundredths of a second behind in bronze position.
Hima Das was up against a formidable challenger in Salwa El Naser of Bahrain in the women’s 400m. She gave it her all but still was outclassed by the Nigerian-born, who clocked a Games record of 50.09. Hima, left well behind, timed 50.79 for her silver, improving the national record of 51.00 she set in the semifinal on Saturday. Nirmala Sheoran, the other Indian in the race, ended fourth in 52.96.
“An athlete always thinks about improving her timings. I never think how fast I can run, when I run, I never think about anything, not about past or future, a runner has to run, that is her job,” said Hima.
Like Hima, Anas also wasn’t the favourite in the men’s 400, thanks to the presence of Abdalelah Hassan of Qatar. Hassan’s long strides decimated the field as he timed 44.89 seconds. For Anas, it was a struggle as he tightened up near the end. He hung on to time 45.69 for the silver. His team-mate Arokia Rajiv was fourth in 45.84.
“It was a tough race. I knew that I had to run below 45 seconds to have a chance of winning but the Qatari was too good,” said Anas. “After 250 metres, my muscles started tightening up, perhaps because of the two hard races I ran yesterday. But I managed to hang on,” he said.
In men’s long jump, M Sreeshankar was in medal position briefly before ending sixth with a 7.98m leap.
China’s Su Bingtian stormed to victory in the men’s 100m in a Games record of 9.92 seconds.
DH News Service
Results: Men: 100M: Su Bingtian (China) 9.92 (Games Record) 1; Tosin Ogunode (Qatar) 10.00, 2; Ryota Yamagata (Japan) 10.00, 3.
400M: Abdalelah Hassan (Qatar) 44.89 seconds, 1; Muhammed Anas (India) 45.69, 2; Ali Khamis (Bahrain) 45.70, 3.
10000M: Hassan Chani (Bahrain) 28:35.54, 1; Abraham Cheroben (Bahrain) 29:00.29, 2; Changhong Zhao (China) 30:07.49, 3.
Long jump: Wang Jianan (China) 8.24, 1; Zhang Yaoguang (China) 8.15, 2; Sapwaturrahman (Indonesia) 8.09, 3.
Hammer throw: Elseify Ashraf (Qatar) 76.88m, 1; D Nazarov (Tajikistan) 74.16, 2; S Khodjaev (Uzbekistan) 74.06, 3.
Decathlon: Keisuke Ushiro (Japan) 7878 points, 1; Suttisak Singkhon (Thailand) 7809, 2; Akihiko Nakamura (Japan) 7738, 3.
Women: 100M: Edidoing Odiong (Bahrain) 11.30 seconds, 1; Dutee Chand (India) 11.32, 2; Wei Yongli (China) 11.33, 3.
400M: Salwa El Naser (Bahrain) 50.09, 1; Hima Das (India) 50.79 (National record. Old 51.00, Hima), 1; Elina Mikhina (Kazakhstan) 52.63, 3.
100M hurdles: Hyelim Jung (Korea) 13.20 seconds, 1; Emilia Nova (Indonesia) 13.33, 2; Lui Lai Yiu (Hong Kong) 13.42, 3.
Shot put: Gong Lijao (China) 19.66 metres, 1; Gao Yang (China) 17.64, 2; Noora Jasim (Bahrain) 17.11, 3.
Marathon: Rose Chelimo (Bahrain) 2:34:51, 1; Keiko Nogomi (Japan) 2:36:27, 2; Kim Hye Song (North Korea) 2:37:20, 3.