Returning from an injury, Uttar Pradesh’s Rohit Yadav bolstered India’s javelin depth by winning the men’s gold medal at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships in Chennai on Sunday, keeping himself in the race for a berth at the World Championships in Tokyo, starting September 13.
The 24-year-old claimed the top spot with a throw of 83.65m on his third attempt, edging past state-mate Sachin Yadav, who finished a close second with 83.20m. Maharashtra’s Shivam Lohakare was third with 80.20m, while Rajasthan’s Yashvir Singh placed fourth at 76.22m.
With the qualification window now closed (deadline August 24), both Sachin and Yashvir are currently inside the top-36 Road to Tokyo rankings, which decide entries via the world ranking quota. Rohit too is in contention, and if he makes the cut, India could send four javelin throwers to the World Championships, including defending champion Neeraj Chopra, who already has a wild card entry.
Expressing his hopes, World Athletics vice president Adille Sumariwalla said it will be a great achievement if India can field four throwers in the javelin event.
World Athletics will confirm the final list of qualified athletes on August 27, followed by the Athletics Federation of India’s (AFI) team selection meeting the next day. Each national federation is allotted three quota places, and with Chopra already having a wild card, there are chances of the next three throwers gaining possible entry.
At the 2023 Budapest Worlds, India also had four throwers, though Rohit missed out due to injury.
Chopra went on to win gold, while Kishore Jena and DP Manu finished fifth and sixth, making it a historic outing with three Indians in the top six.
Meanwhile, long jumper Murali Sreeshankar came up with an effort of 8.06m to pocket the gold but the 26-year-old will have to wait till August 27 when World Athletics unveils the final list of eligible athletes to compete in Tokyo.