Second Indian Grand Prix: Vithya, Baranica bag top prizes

CHENNAI: Some of India’s finest athletes descended on Chennai at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium for the second edition of the Indian Grand Prix on Thursday.

Humidity awaited the athletes, but it didn’t deter them from giving their best as they vied for a Paris Olympics berth. With June 30 as the qualification deadline, the points they acquire here in Chennai and every upcoming tournament will help them in realising their Olympic goal.

Vithya bags top spot in 400m hurdles:

Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medallist, Vithya Ramraj of Tamil Nadu, who didn’t have the best outing at the recently concluded Federation Cup in Odisha due to discomfort in her back, was a favorite in the women’s 400 hurdles. She made no mistake as she comfortably edged past her fellow runners, finishing the race with a timing of 57.28s. The Olympic qualification mark for the 400m hurdles stands at 54.85s.

Abha continues to dominate:

Abha Khatua, who achieved her personal best at the national federation senior athletics meet earlier this year with 18.41m, had to settle for 17.13m as her best on Thursday, which helped her clinch the top spot, achieved in her last and final attempt. Abha started a little slowly with her first attempt at 15.34m but soon found her groove by throwing 16.71m in her second attempt. With just three competitors in the fray, nobody came close to her as Sharmila M from Tamil Nadu stood second with her best throw of 12.90m.

Santhosh falls short in 400m hurdles:

Coming into the tournament after clinching the gold medal at the national federation senior athletics meet, Tamil Nadu’s Santhosh Kumar T was edged by a few meters in the final lap by Jabir Madari of Kerala, who finished first in the men’s 400m hurdles race clocking 49.94s. Sathish K of Tamil Nadu finished third with a timing of 51.46.

"I had planned to break the 50-second barrier here in Bhubaneswar. But something went wrong somewhere," said Santhosh after winning the gold during the national federation meet in Odisha and finishing second in Chennai with a timing of 50.14s underscores the work that needs to be done for him to qualify for the Paris Olympics, with the qualification mark standing at 48.70s.

Baranica finishes first in Pole Vault:

In the women’s pole vault, Baranica Elangovan from Tamil Nadu was the standout performer. Baranica holds the Indian Grand Prix meet record of 4.10m which she achieved in Bengaluru in 2023, she tried to breach the 4.11 mark in Chennai on Thursday and despite three final attempts, she couldn’t breach it and had to settle for 4.00m, and bag the top spot. Mariya Jaison of Kerala finished second with 3.90m.

Mohammed Salahuddin of Tamil Nadu finished first in the men’s triple jump event with a best jump of 16.40m, while Karthik U stood second with 16.20m.

In the men’s 200m, Naulunothu Shan from Andhra Pradesh emerged victorious, finishing in 21.18s, followed by Tamil Nadu’s Varun Oori Manohar at 21.70s. Both athletes missed the Olympic qualification mark of 20.16s but showcased tremendous potential.

Odisha’s Sarbani Nanda finished first in the women’s 200m, with Daneshwari AT and Dhivya J of Tamil Nadu finishing second and third respectively.