India In Olympics: With 64 m feat, Kamalpreet enters discus throw final

Tokyo

The 25-year-old Kamalpreet, competing in qualification B, sent the discus to a distance of 64 metres in her third and final attempt to be one of the only two automatic qualifiers for the final round. The final will be hosted on Monday.

The Indian finished ahead of defending Olympic champion Sandra Perkovic (63.75m) of Croatia and reigning world champion Yaime Perez (63.18) of Cuba. However, veteran Seema Punia made an exit after finishing sixth in qualification A and 16th overall with a below-par best throw of 60.57m.

Kamalpreet began with a 60.29m effort and then improved it to 63.97m before her third throw of 64m. Those who touch 64m or at least the 12 best performers in the two qualifying rounds combined advance to the final. “Olympics is a big stage. I was feeling nervous before the first throw. But after it, I felt better. By the third throw, I was confident and that is why I touched the 64m mark,”said Kamalpreet.

Sindhu loses to Tai Tzu in semis

PV Sindhu’s hopes of securing India’s first-ever Olympic gold in badminton came crashing down as she slumped to a straight-game defeat against World No.1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei in the women’s singles semi-finals on Saturday.