Lin Yu-Tong in the long jump at the Asian Championships (© Vinu Mohanan)
The last two days of action at the Asian Championships saw long jumper Lin Yu-Tang from Chinese Taipei and pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena from the Philippines smash the championship records at the Supachalasai National Stadium in Bangkok.
In the men’s long jump on Saturday (15), held in hot conditions, India’s Murali Sreeshankar opened with 8.10m, which Yu-Tang equalled a few minutes later. Asian indoor bronze medallist Zhang Mingkun of China logged 8.08m in the first round but did not go any farther.
Sreeshankar took control again with his third-round 8.12m, but Yu-Tang responded with a huge national record of 8.40m in the next round, elevating him to equal seventh on the Asian all-time list. Sreeshankar jumped 8.37m into a headwind in the final round to secure the silver, with both men achieving the Olympic qualifying standard.
Obiena, who last month became the first Asian pole vaulter to scale six metres, increased his own championship record by 20 centimetres to 5.91m before ending his series with three unsuccessful tries at 6.02m.
Yu-Tang and Obiena were among 12 athletes to set a championship record across the five days of competition. Meanwhile, six individual athletes and two relay teams successfully defended their titles from the previous edition held four years ago.
Apart from Obiena in pole vault, the other successful title-defender on Sunday (16) was Abdalla Haydar Abubaker in the men’s 800m. The Qatari runner won by more than half a second in 1:45.33.
Singapore’s Shanti Veronica Pereira completed the women’s sprint double. Having won the 100m earlier in the championships, she took the 200m title in a championship record of 22.70 to finish comfortably ahead of India’s Jyothi Yarraji (23.13), who had earlier won the 100m hurdles title.
The championship record also fell in the men’s 200m, won by Japane’s Towa Uzawa in 20.23. Defending champion Xie Zhenye of China finished just outside the podium in fourth.
World indoor champion Woo Sang-Hyeok had seamless first-attempt clearances in the men’s high jump up to and including 2.28m. He then tried 2.33m but knocked down the cross bar three times. India’s Sarvesh Anil Kushare took silver on countback ahead of Thailand’s Tawan Kaeodam, both men clearing 2.26m.
Japan’s Roderik Genki Dean won the men’s javelin (83.15m) with India’s DP Manu taking silver with 81.01m.
The women’s 800m saw a keen contest between Sri Lankans Tharushi Dilasara Mudiyanselage and Gayanthika Abeyrathna with India’s Chanda. Tharushi produced a gallant finish to win in a championship record of 2:00.66 ahead of Chanda (2:01.58) and Abeyrathna (2:03.25).
A few minutes later, Tharushi came back to anchor the Sri Lankan 4x400m team to a silver medal in a national record 3:33.27 behind the winning team from Vietnam (3:32.36).
Sri Lanka’s men’s 4x400m relay quartet – Aruna Dharshana, Kaushika Keshan, Rajitha Niranjan Rajakaruna and Kalinga Kumarage – wrapped up the final day’s programme with the last championship record of the week, winning in a national record of 3:01.56 ahead of India (3:01.80) and Qatar (3:04.26).
India won the mixed 4x400m in 3:14.70 ahead of Sri Lanka (3:15.41) and Japan (3:15.71).
The next two editions of the Asian Championships will be held at Gumi, Korea (2025) and Xiamen, China (2027).
Ram Murali Krishnan for World Athletics
