Abhishek Mishra
The stage is set for a historic moment in Indian athletics – The commencement of the nation’s first-ever World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze meet.
On the evening of August 10, the beautiful Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar will come alive as fans are going to witness world-class action like never before on Indian soil. For the first time, Indian athletes will go head-to-head with international athletes in a World Tour event on home soil. The WACT Bronze meet in India will see 160 athletes from 17 countries, competing in 19 events in a single day.
This bronze-level meet offers all the athletes a great chance to earn crucial ranking points and also the timing of the event is perfect as it is scheduled just before the deadline date of the Tokyo World Championships qualification.
“The timing of this event is fantastic, roughly one month before the World Athletics Championships which gives an opportunity to athletes to qualify, it gives athletes a good competition,” says World Athletics Vice President Adile Sumariwalla during the press meet at Kalinga Stadium.
Sumariwalla believes that this meet will be a stepping stone in India’s athletics revolution.
“We’re on the rise and this event will be a stepping stone,” he said. “We wanted to do a silver or a gold-level event, but World Athletics asked us to start with the bronze level. It is helpful for the aspirations of holding a Diamond League or World Championships in the future,” he added.
The javelin throw event at Kalinga Stadium promises an intense India–Sri Lanka showdown. India’s golden boy, Neeraj Chopra, is away in Europe, training for the 2025 World Athletics Championships. In his absence, Sachin Yadav and Yashvir Singh will spearhead India’s challenge. They will face stiff competition from Srilanka’s Sumedha Ranasinghe and Rumesh Pathirage. Whereas, local lad, Kishore Jena, struggling with injuries won’t be seen hurling the Javelin.
Sachin, who twisted his ankle at the NC Classic in Bengaluru, is still on the road to recovery. “I’ll try to give my best,” he said, cautiously adding, “I’m not fully recovered, so I’ll avoid putting too much pressure on my ankle.”
In the women’s javelin throw, Asian Games gold medalist, Annu Rani, 32, will be aiming to stamp her authority on the event. Currently in strong form, Annu crossed the 60m mark for the first time in over a year during a meet in Poland on 6th August. She managed to surpass the mark thrice, with her best effort being an impressive 62.59m
She was hopeful of crossing the 60m mark on Sunday. “I’m used to Bhubaneswar’s local weather conditions,” said Annu. “I should be able to do my best at the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze level meet on Sunday.”
Annu believes her recent performances in Europe have given her a timely confidence boost ahead of the World Championships 2025: “With the World Championships around the corner, I wanted to perform well and I did. A season’s best, crossing 62m for the first time since the Asian Games has lifted my confidence. This will definitely help me at the upcoming World Championships,” Annu told Revsportz after the press meet.
In the 100m dash, national record holder Animesh Kujur is aiming to make the most of his home advantage. “I’m looking forward to gaining the home advantage,” said Kujur at the press meet.
He will face stiff competition from Malaysian sprinter Muhammad Azeem Fahemi, who has a wind-aided personal best of 10.01s and also holds the Malaysian national record of 10.09s.
Although Animesh has been performing well in the 100m, his eyes are firmly set on the 200m as he races to qualify for the Tokyo World Championships through the rankings. “My focus will be more on the 200m,” he added.
In the long jump, Murali Sreeshankar will look to take a big leap in front of a familiar crowd. The Kalinga Stadium holds a special place in Murali’s career; it’s where he first set the national record and achieved his personal best of 8.41m. Returning to the runway after injury, Murali has clinched three back-to-back victories and will now aim to clear the direct qualification mark of 8.27m to seal his berth for the World Championships.
Key Athletes to Watch
From India: Sachin Yadav, Annu Rani, Yashvir Singh, Shivam Lokhare, Murali Sreesankar, Shaili Singh, Pooja, Abdulla Aboobackar, Muhammad Afsal, Vishal TK, Jeswin Aldrin, Vishal TK.
International Contenders: Sumedha Ranasinghe (Sri Lanka), Rumesh Pathirage (Sri Lanka), Muhammad Azeem Fahemi (Malaysia), Alice Hopkins (Great Britain).
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