Federation Cup Athletics: Jyothi wins 200m, Rohit Yadav wins gold with PB

Jyothi Yarraji, a prominent hurdler, shone brightly on the final day of the Federation Cup Athletics Championship in Ranchi, claiming her second gold medal.

Jyothi showcased her exceptional skills by triumphing in the women's 200m race, capturing the attention of the audience.

Notably, her impressive winning time of 23.42 seconds surpassed the qualifying mark of 23.50 seconds set by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for the upcoming Asian Athletics Championship scheduled from July 12-16.

The AFI's selection committee will consider various factors, including the athletes' potential to secure medals while forming the Indian team for the continental championships.

Continuing her remarkable performance, Jyothi, representing Andhra Pradesh, clinched the yellow metal. Just a day after setting a new meet record in the women's 100m hurdles with a stunning time of 12.89 seconds, Jyothi showcased her exceptional skills once again in the highly competitive women's 200m race.

She outperformed renowned athlete Archana Suseendran, crossing the finish line with a remarkable time of 23.42 seconds. Archana, representing Tamil Nadu, put up a commendable performance and earned the silver medal with a time of 23.61 seconds.

In the corresponding men's 200m race, Amlan Borgohain from Assam emerged victorious by clocking an impressive time of 20.83 seconds. His outstanding performance not only secured him the gold medal but also surpassed the AFI's Asian Championships mark of 20.61 seconds.

Borgohain's achievement highlighted his prowess as one of the country's top male sprinters.

International javelin thrower Rohit Yadav was also impressive on Thursday. He was steady in his performance and achieved a personal best of 83.40m to win the gold. His previous best was 82.54m. Manu DP took home silver with an 82.95m throw.

Five athletes breached the AFI's Asian Championships mark of 2:05.74 in the women's 800m race, which was won by Chanda of Delhi.

In the morning session, Uttar Pradesh distance runner Gulveer Singh added the men's 5,000m gold to his kitty after winning the yellow metal in 10,000m on the opening day.

Reigning Asian Games 1500m champion Jinson Johnson also continued his strong comeback as he won gold in the 1500m event, clocking a time of 3:44.43. Johnson, who is a Reliance Foundation Scholarship athlete, also made the cut for the Asian Championships with his timing in the final.

“I was pleased to get the win, and it feels good to get some races under my belt after a long time away from the track. I have received a lot of support from the Reliance Foundation over the last four years during my injury and subsequent rehab, and am gradually feeling more confident about my performance. I am now looking forward to competing internationally to get myself in the best shape as the season progresses, with the Asian Championships and Asian Games being my target events," Jinson said after the final.

There was also a double podium finish in the men’s 100m for Reliance Foundation as K Elakkiyadasan and Dondapati Jayaram won silver and bronze respectively. Elakkiyadasan ran a time of 10.37s, while Jayaram clocked 10.40s.

“After being the U20 champion, winning a bronze in the senior category is a very big achievement for me. I hope to learn from this and do even better at the junior Asian Championships," Jayaram said while reflecting on his medal-winning effort.