Athletics
Anushka, Dev Meena set national records at Inter-State C'ships, Jyothi Yarraji returns
Jyothi Yarraji marked her comeback from an ACL injury with gold and an Asian Games qualification.
Dev Meena (Photo credit: AFI)
National records tumbled on the opening day of the Inter-State Athletics Championships in Bhubaneswar as Anushka Yadav and Dev Meena produced standout performances to secure qualification for the 2026 Asian Games.
The biggest headline came in the women's hammer throw, where 18-year-old Anushka Yadav rewrote the national record books with a throw of 67.02m. The youngster first surpassed the Asian Games qualifying standard of 61.72m with an opening effort of 62.07m before improving to 65.64m and finally unleashing a record-breaking throw on her last attempt.
Her mark eclipsed the previous national record of 65.25m set by Sarita Singh nine years ago, making Anushka the new national record holder and one of India's brightest prospects in the event.
In the men's pole vault, Dev Meena added another chapter to his growing rivalry with fellow national record holder Kuldeep Kumar. Meena cleared 5.46m on his third attempt to better his own national record of 5.45m while also surpassing the Asian Games qualification mark.
Yarraji makes winning return after ACL injury
National record holder Jyothi Yarraji enjoyed a dream comeback after recovering from an ACL tear, winning the women's 100m hurdles title in 12.99 seconds.
Competing in her first major event since the injury, Yarraji dipped below the 13-second mark and comfortably achieved the Asian Games qualification standard. Nandhini Kongan finished second with a personal best of 13.22s, with both athletes booking their places for Aichi-Nagoya 2026.
The women's triple jump also produced a standout performance as I. Asha Elango registered a personal best leap of 13.89m.
The effort made her the third-best Indian triple jumper in history and the fourth-best performer in Asia this season. Earlier in the competition, she had already crossed the Asian Games qualification standard of 13.34m with a jump of 13.67m.
The championships had begun with Gulveer Singh claiming the men's 5000m title, but the opening day ultimately belonged to Anushka, Dev and Jyothi, whose performances highlighted a strong start to India's Asian Games qualification campaign.