Last Updated:
The Athletics Federation of India prioritizes men’s and women’s 4x100m relays for the 2026 Asian Games, aiming for medals based on recent strong performances.
Athletics Representational Image. (AFP Photo)
The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has designated the men’s and women’s 4x100m relays as priority events for the 2026 Asian Games in Japan, motivated by recent strong performances in both domestic and international competitions.
Top AFI officials anticipate medals from these events at the Asian Games scheduled in Aichi-Nagoya from September 19 to October 4, 2026.
“The AFI has included men’s and women’s 4x100m relay teams as a priority event for the 2026 Asian Games,” stated AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla.
“A series of outstanding performances by relay teams augurs well for the future,” added Sumariwalla, vice-president of World Athletics and former AFI president.
In April this year, the 4x100m relay team of Gurindervir Singh, Animesh Kujur, Manikanta Hoblidhar, and Amlan Borgohain clocked 38.69 seconds, surpassing the national record of 38.89 seconds set at the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games.
Based on the timings of the top three finishers in the 2022 Games in Hangzhou, India has a chance to secure a podium finish in Japan in 2026. China won gold with a time of 38.29 seconds, while Japan (38.44 seconds) and South Korea (38.74 seconds) secured silver and bronze, respectively.
In the women’s 4x100m relay, the team of Abhinaya Rajarajan, Srabani Nanda, Sneha SS, and Nithya Gandhe clocked 43.86 seconds to win silver at the recent Asian Championships in Gumi, South Korea.
India did not send any 4x100m relay teams to the 2018 and 2022 Asian Games. The last appearance of the Indian women’s 4x100m team in the Asian Games was in the 2014 edition in Incheon, where the team of Sarbani Nanda, Asha Roy, Sharadha Narayana, and H M Jyothi finished sixth in the final with a time of 44.91 seconds.
The last participation of the Indian men’s 4x100m relay team in the Asian Games was in the 2010 edition in Guangzhou, where the team of Rahamatulla Molla, Sathya Suresh, Shameer Mon, and Najeeb Qureshi finished fourth in the final with a time of 39.10 seconds.
Sumariwalla mentioned that the Reliance Academy in Mumbai will be the main training centre for the men’s 4x100m relay team, while the top female sprinters will train at the National Centre of Excellence in Thiruvananthapuram to prepare for upcoming international events.
(with agency inputs)
After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term…Read More
After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term… Read More
- First Published:
Source link
[ad_3]