National Open Athletics C'ships: Manikanta storms to 100m gold with second fastest time

Ranchi, Sep 28 (IANS) Former national record holder Manikanta Hoblidhar lit up a rain-affected day at the National Open Athletics Championships on Sunday, smashing his own meet record to win the men’s 100m title in 10.19 seconds, the second fastest time ever by an Indian sprinter.

At the Birsa Munda Stadium, the 24-year-old displayed superb consistency, having equalled his previous meet record of 10.23 in the semifinals before powering past a quality field in the final. He finished well ahead of Pranav Gurav (10.31) and Harsh Raut (10.38), underlining his dominance despite difficult conditions.

Manikanta’s winning time was just 0.01 seconds shy of Animesh Kujur’s national record of 10.18. After the race, he admitted the wet track had hampered his rhythm. “I was aiming for 10.10, but the wet track slowed down my pace. My target is to get an individual medal at the 2026 Asian Games,” said Manikanta, who also bettered his personal best of 10.22.

The day, however, was marred by injuries to two promising athletes. High jumper Gobika K., who had already secured gold with a clearance of 1.79m, suffered a serious right knee injury attempting a higher mark. She had to be stretchered off, screaming in pain, leaving the crowd stunned.

In the women’s 100m, Sneha S.S. (11.62) edged out Sudeshna Shivankar (11.64) and Abinaya Rajarajan (11.67) in a tightly fought race. But tragedy struck again when Abinaya, who has been managing a lung condition, collapsed in agony after aggravating a groin issue. She too had to be carried off the track.

There were brighter moments elsewhere on the track. Olympian quarter-miler Rajesh Ramesh timed his finish to perfection, overtaking Santhosh T. with 80m to go to clinch gold in the men’s 400m with a season-best 45.75. In the 110m hurdles, Manav R. defended his title in the absence of Tejas Shirse, clocking 13.97 to bag gold.

--IANS

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