2019 Athletics World Championships: Avinash Sable rewrites national record, qualifies for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

24-year-old Avinash Sable, on Friday, rewrote his own national record at the ongoing IAAF Athletics World Championships, and qualified for 3000m steeplechase event at next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Three Indians were in action in Doha late on Friday night as most of India slept — Avinash Sable in the men's 3000m steeplechase final, and Irfan Thodi and Devender Singh in the men's 20km walk final.

The onus was on Sable to start the night on a positive note and the youngster did exceedingly well. As the race got underway, it appeared that Sable was saving energy for the later stages. He started slow, right at the back of the pack while two Ethiopians led. In fact, Getnet Wale of Ethiopia took the lead at the end of the first lap clocking 2:39:55s.

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At the 2000m, Sable was still behind everyone. The Kenyans had started accelerating by then but the Ethiopians still led with Wale's compatriot Lamecha Girma.

Entering the final lap, however, it was the Indian who started picking up the pace. He managed to overtake two opponents and finish 13th. By then Conselus Kipruto of Kenya had made a stunning dash in the last 30 meters to squeeze past Girma to win the gold with a World Leading timing of 8:01:35.

More importantly for Sable, by the end of the 3000m, he had managed to shave off nearly four seconds from his previous best of 8:25:23, finishing at 8:21.37.

The new national record also helped him breach the Olympic qualification mark of 8:22.00 and seal a spot at the 2020 Tokyo Games.