2019 Athletics World Championships: Annu Rani finishes eighth in javelin finals

Indian javelin thrower Annu Rani, on Tuesday, finished eighth in the women's javelin throw final at the ongoing IAAF World Athletics Championships at the Khalifa Stadium in Doha. This was the first time an Indian woman was competing in the finals of the javelin throw event and Annu did not disappoint, with a best attempt of 61.12m.

The 27-year-old, who walked out to the loudest cheers among the 12 athletes, began her campaign in the final with a throw of 59.25m and was fifth after everyone's first attempts. Annu followed it up with a second throw of 61.12m, which turned out to be her best throw, but after the second round, she dropped down to seventh.

She then threw 60.20m in the third attempt and finished 8th after the first three attempts. Consequently, she went first in the final set of throws for the eight remaining athletes. Annu hit a distance of 60.40m, a throw which did not help her climb up. Her fifth attempt of 58.49m was even lower while her last attempt could only fetch 57.93m.

Also read: 2019 World Athletics Championships: Javelin Thrower Annu Rani smashes national record, reaches final

Earlier, in the qualification round, Annu had bettered her then best of 62.34m, a mark she had set at the Federation Cup in March. She threw a distance of 62.43m, a new national record.

The Asian Athletics Championships silver medallist found herself in the third spot in Group A. Although she was more than a metre behind the automatic qualification mark of 63.50s, Annu qualified for the finals as one of the best 12 from the two qualification groups.