Indian athletics, gold count soars to new high-12/10/2010

12/10/2010

Indian athletics, gold count soars to new high

(I SALUTE ALL THESE HEROES WHO MADE US PROUD,INCLUDING WHO ALL WERE WORKING BEHIND THE SCENE.GOOD WISHES FOR FUTURE...VIBHA)

New Delhi: Indian athletics soared to a new high at the Commonwealth Games here Tuesday with the women's quartet of Mandeep Kaur, Manjeet Kaur, Sini Jose and Ashwini Chidananda winning the gold in the 4x400 metres relay, topping Monday's 1-2-3 showing by the women shot putters.



India's Sini Jose, Ashwini Akkunji, Manjeet Kaur and Mandeep Kaur celebrate their win in the women's 4x400m relay final of the Track and Field competition of the XIX Commonwealth Games on October 12, 2010 in New Delhi. AFP

The Indians clocked 3:27.77 seconds and left Nigeria (silver, 3:28.72) and England (3:29.51) behind.

In the morning, women shooters Heena Sidhu and Annu Raj Singh shot the day's first gold, helping India surpass the highest count of 30 achieved eight years ago at the Manchester Games.

The two gold, which took the tally to 32, was topped by Indian men beating England in tie breaker 5-4 - aggregate 8-7 (3-3) - to enter the hockey final, making sure of a medal for the first time since the discipline was included at the Kuala Lumpur Games in 1998.



India's Sini Jose, Ashwini Akkunji, Manjeet Kaur and Mandeep Kaur celebrate their win in the women's 4x400m relay final of the Track and Field competition of the XIX Commonwealth Games on October 12, 2010 in New Delhi. AFP

At 2100 IST Tuesday, India's medal tally read: 32 gold, 25 silver and 32 bronze for a total of 89. With 66 gold, 45 silver and 40 bronze, Australia remained table toppers. England were third with 30-50-38.

In badminton, India's Chetan Anand and Parupalli Kashyap lost their semi-final matches and they now fight for the bronze while Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa entered the women's doubles final, thus making sure of at least silver.

Reigning table tennis champion Sharath Kamal and Soumyadeep Roy made it to the men's singles final -- two Indians in the semis for the first time. In the men's doubles, Sharath Kamal and Subhajit Saha entered semi-finals while Mouma Das and Poulomi Ghatak are in the semis.



India's Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Michimanda celebrate after defeating Australia's He Tian Tang and Kate Wilson-Smith in the women's doubles semifinal badminton match of the XIX Commonwealth Games at the Siri Fort sports Complex in New Delhi. The Indian pair won 12-21, 21-13, 21-11. AFP

At Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, India began the evening session on a great note as both the men and women's 4x100 metres relay teams won bronze. As the night wore on, Renjit Maheshwary won the men's triple jump bronze with his personal best, bettering the national record, to touch 17.07 metres. Gold went to Nigeria's Tosin Oke (17.16) and Cameroon's Lucien Hugo Mamba Schlick (17.14).

Rahamatulla Molla, Suresh Sathya, Shameer Naseema Manzile and Md Abdul Najeeb Qureshi finished third in the race with a timing of 38.89 seconds behind gold-winning England(38.74) and silver Jamaica (38.79).



India's Kashinath Naik (bronze) poses during the men's Javelin medal ceremony of the Track and Field competition of the XIX Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Australia's Jarrod Bannister threw 81.71 metres to win the men's javelin gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. New Zealand's Stuart Farquhar came second (78.15) and India's Kashinath Naik took the bronze (74.21). AFP

Geetha Satti, Shrabani nanda, P. K. Priya and Jyothi Hiriyur Manjunath narrowly missed the silver in almost photo-finish in 45.25 behind gold medallists England (44.19) and silver Ghana (45.24).

Kashinath Naik won the evening's third bronze in the men's javelin. He sent the spear soaring to a distance of 74.29 metres. Jarrod Bannister (81.71 metres) of Australia got the gold, while new Zealander Stuart Farquhar (78.15 metres) won the silver.



India's Renjith Maheswary (bronze) poses during the men's Triple Jump medal ceremony of the Track and Field competition of the XIX Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Nigeria's Tosin Oke won the men's Commonwealth Games triple jump gold medal with a leap of 17.16 metres. Cameroon's Lucien Mamba Schlick took the silver (17.14) and India's Renjith Maheswary (17.07) claimed the bronze. AFP

At the Karni Singh range, World champion Tejaswini Sawant won the silver in the women's 50-metre prone event and 'Goldfinger' Samresh Jung and Chandrasekhar Kumar Chaudhary got the silver in the men's 25-metre standard pistol pairs' event.



India's Rahamatulla Molla, Krishnakumar Rane, Manzile Naseema and Abdul Najeeb Qureshi celebrate their bronze medal in the men's 4x100m relay final of the Track and Field competition of the XIX Commonwealth Games. England won the Commonwealth Games men's 4x100m relay gold medal, crossing the line in 38.74 seconds. Jamaica came second in 38.79 and India was third in 38.89. AFP

In the women's 10-metre air pistol, India, Australia and Canada were tied for the gold with 759 points each. Canada got the bronze on the basis of lesser number of perfect 10s - they shot 14. India and Australia had 21 each. India bagged the gold on the basis of count-back.



India's Sharath Kamal Achanta beat 176th ranked Ma 11-7, 11-3, 11-7, 6-11, 11-6 in his quarterfinal match at the packed crowd at the Yamuna Sports Complex. AFP

A second dope case, also involving a Nigerian athlete, has been found, Commonwealth Games Federation Mike Fennell told reporters.

"We have had a second anti-doping code violation. Nigeria's Samuel Okon, a 110-metre hurdler, has tested positive for the same Methylhexaneamine substance," Fennell said.



India's Soumyadeep Roy upset fancied Cai Xiaoli of Singapore 11-7, 5-11, 12-10, 11-5, 13-11 in the quarterfinals. AFP

Fennell announced Monday that Nigerian athlete Osayemi Oludamola, who was awarded gold in 100 metres race after Australian Sally Pearson was disqualified for false start, had tested positive for Methylhexaneamine substance.



Gold medalists Heena Sidhu (L) and Annu Raj Singh (R) of India pose at the medal ceremony of the women's pairs 10m air pistol event of the XIX Commonwealth Games at the Karni Singh shooting range in New Delhi. AFP

She has been provisionally suspended. A decision on withdrawing her gold medal will be taken after the results of test of her B sample are received.

Source: IANS