Inter-state meet last chance saloon for Tokyo ticket

ATHLETES from across the country have come here hoping to grab a final chance to qualify for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo next month.

- CHANDRA PRABHU @Chennai

The tension in the track and field area in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here is building, with athletes ensuring their preparations are on point.

The qualification period for the blue-riband event ends on August 24, the day this meet concludes.

Only a handful of athletes including Neeraj Chopra (men's javelin) have qualified for the biennial meet but Avinash Sable (men's steeplechase) is already out of the season with an ACL issue.

Some of the others to have met the mark via meeting the entry standards are Parul Chaudhary (women's steeplechase) and Praveen Chitravel (men's triple jump).

It's possible that number can swell as athletes can also make it via ranking.