A closer look at the breakdown reveals that athletics and shooting taken together have accounted for 60 per cent of India’s medals tally. Neeraj Chopra, the world and Olympic champion, stayed true to his mission of retaining the gold he won five years ago, with his season’s best throw of 88.88 m, though this was easier said than done.
The other gold medallists from India in athletics were Annu Rani (women’s javelin), Tajinderpal Singh Toor (men’s shotput), Avinash Sable (men’s 3,000 m steeplechase), Parul Chaudhary (women’s 5,000 m) and the quartet of Muhammad Anas, Amoj Jacob, Muhammad Ajmal and Rajesh Ramesh (men’s 4×400 m relay), accounting for the six top podium finish.
As the medals continued to rain down for the athletes, Tejaswin Shankar (men’s decathlon) and the mixed 4×400 m relay team of Muhammad Ajmal, Vithya Ramraj, Rajesh Ramesh, and Subha Venkatesan reset the national record in their respective events. Vithya also grabbed the spotlight when she equalled Usha’s national mark in the women’s 400 m hurdles after almost four decades.
There was no dearth of drama, not to mention some serious competition from compatriot Kishore Jena before Chopra emerged as the showstopper in the javelin final. If one thought the decks were clear for the world champion once Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem pulled out at the eleventh hour, it was not quite the case.
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