ANIMESH'S HAPPY RUN. ABHA'S RECORD THROW

Sprinter clinches gold in 200m; shot putter raises national bar

-  INDRANEEL DAS

EVERY discourse ended with him. As if he was omnipresent. It was either the rain that brought the heat down on Monday or the person supposed to be here: Neeraj Chopra. In the warm-up area or the playing arena. Amidst the hype and hoopla surrounding Neeraj, others went about their chores like support casts at National Federation Senior Athletics Competition here on Monday.

An accidental sprinter, a footballer as a child and now running 200m for fun, and almost touching the national record.

The story of Animesh Kujur is quite enchanting, especially the way he narrated it after touching the tape at 20.62s at the Kalinga Stadium. Nalubothu Shanamaga (20.97s) finished second while Jay Shah (21.93m) was third. As he sprinted towards the finish line in twilight, a waft of wind blew across the ground that brought the temperature down further. It was comfortable and conditions were ideal for running, jumping and throwing.

If Animesh was scorching the track, in the far end, Abha Khatua was creating a new national record in women's shot put, hurling the iron to 18.41m, way, way better than the previous record holder (18.06m by Manpreet Kaur). Kiran Baliyan finished second with a throw of 16.54m, while Srishti Vij managed 15.86m for bronze.