Navpreet Singh bags gold in shot put in Asian Athletics Championship

Amman , July 28 (UNI) Navpreet Singh came up with his season's best throw of 19.70m to win gold in men's shot put in the Asian Athletics championship here today.

Singh, who has a personal best of 19.93m which he achieved three years ago, had won silver in the last edition of the Championship in Incheon, Korea. He had recorded 18.60m to win gold in the Guwahati National Games.

Preeja Shridharan added a silver in women's 5000m race while Krishna Poonia won a bronze in women's discus throw.

Preeja, who fetched India's first medal by coming second in the 10,000m race on the first day of the Championship on Wednesday, ran 16:56.16 to finish behind Bahrain's Karima Saleh Jasmine, who clocked 16:40.87.

Poonia could clear 55.38m while compatriot Manjit Kaur was fourth with 52.43m.

With today's three medals, India's medal tally has swelled to nine with two gold, five silver and two bronze.

Earlier yesterday, Chitra K Soman gave India its first gold medal by winning the women's 400m race, clocking 53.03 seconds, ahead of Japanese Asami Tanno (53.20s) and Sri Lankan S. Mgnaka (54.11s).

The Indian's effort was just a fraction of a second lesser than her season's best of 53.01s which she achieved in the Guwahati leg of the Asian Grand Prix last month, though much below her personal best of 52.48s.

Star long jumper Anju Bobby George won a silver, leaping 6.65m and in the process clearing the World Championship qualifying mark of 6.60m. But, the wind speed of 4.1m/s, which exceeded the legal limit, meant she did not qualify for the prestigious event in Osaka , Japan , next month.

Kazakhstan 's Olga Rypakova jumped 6.66m in her last attempt to win the gold.

Anju had failed to clear the World Championship qualifying mark in the three legs of Asian Grand Prix in Bangkok , Guwahati and Pune last month, besides the National Combined Events and Jumps meet in Pune.

On Thursday, Sinimole Paulose had won a silver in women's 800m, while JJ Shobha and Sushmita Singha Roy added a silver and bronze, respectively, in heptathlon.

Paulose had clocked 2:06.15 behind Truong Thanh Hang of Vietnam (2:04.77), while another Indian, Sushma Devi, was fourth with a timing of 2:10.63. Ayako Jinnouchi (2:08.75) of Japan got the bronze.

Paulose's effort was well below her personal best of 2:02.02 and her season's best mark of 2:04.65 during the National Combined Events and Jumps in Pune last month.

In women's heptathlon, Shobha scored 5,356 points, while Sushmita totalled 5,154. The gold in the seven-event discipline was won by Irina Naumenko of Kazakhstan with 5,617 points.

UNI