Headlines
Tintu Luka wins gold, qualifies for Worlds
Wuhan (China), June 7
India's Tintu Luka won
the gold medal in the women's 800 metres, while the country got four
more medals on the concluding day of the Asian Athletics Championships
at the Wuhan Sports Center here on Sunday. India finished third in the
event with 13 medals (4 gold, 5 silver and 4 bronze).
Tintu, who
had won the bronze medal in the 2013 edition of the competition,
completed the race in 2:01.53 minutes to finish ahead of second placed
China's Zhao Jing who did it in 2:03.40 minutes. Sri Lankan Nimali
Liyanarachchi came third in 2:03.94 minutes.
As the continental
champion, Tintu, a protege of legendary sprinter P.T. Usha, secured a
place in the World Championships 2015. However, she is yet to qualify
for the next year's Olympics that has a qualifying mark of 2:1:00
minutes.
Among other medal winners on Sunday, Johnson Jinson
clinched the silver medal as he completed the men's 800 metres race in
1:49.69 minutes. Qatar's Musaab Bala claimed the title in 1:49.40
minutes, while Sho Kawamoto of Japan took the third spot in 1:50.50
minutes.
Dharambir Singh and Srabani Nanda won the bronze medals
in the in men's and women's 200 metres, respectively. Dharambir, who
completed the race in 20.66 seconds, also broke the national record of
20.73 seconds set by Anil Kumar in 2000.
Dharambir finished 00.34
seconds slower than champion Femi Ogunode of Qatar. F. Alsubaie of
Kazakhstan took the second spot in 20.63 seconds.
Srabani
finished her race in 23.54 seconds. While Viktoriya Zyabkina of
Kazakhstan took the gold medal in 23.09 seconds, the silver medal went
to her compatriot Olga Safronova, who finished the race in 23.46
seconds.
However, India failed to defend its title in the women's
4x400 metres relay as they finished second with an effort of 3:33.81
minutes. China won the title in 3:33.44 minutes while Kazakhstan took
the bronze medal in 3:35.14 minutes.
In the overall medal
standings, China finished on top with 41 medals (15 gold, 13 silver and
13 bronze), while Qatar came second with 10 medals (7 gold, 2 silver
and 1 bronze). India finished third, while Japan and Bahrain came fourth
and fifth, respectively.