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The 60th National Inter-State Athletics Championships starts on 25th June 2021 and ends on 29th June 2021. The 5-day event will take place at the National Institute of Sports and Punjabi University in Patiala, Punjab. It will serve as one final chance for Indian track and field athletes to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
At the Indian Grand Prix 4, the athletes put in their best efforts to qualify for the quadrennial event in Japan. Shot put national record holder Tajinderpal Singh Toor managed to get through with a throw of 21.49m while others failed to do so.
Among the top Indian athletes at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships, Harmilan Bains will be the one to watch out for. The 23-year-old from Punjab will compete in 1500m and hope to make the cut for the Tokyo Olympics 2020. She recently improved the personal best timing to 4:08:27 seconds at the Indian Grand Prix 4.
Harmilan eyes 1500m Olympic qualification mark at National Inter-State Athletics Championships
The Olympic qualification standard for the women's 1500m at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 is 4:04.20 seconds. Harmilan Bains's personal best timing is 4:08:27. This means she has to punch above her weight to achieve the qualification mark to book a Tokyo Olympics berth at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships.
Harmilan Bains will have the task cut out in order to improve her timing by 4 seconds to meet the qualification mark. At the Indian Grand Prix 4, the 23-year-old was seen pushing her limits during the women's 1500m race but was nowhere close to the qualification mark.
As the Tokyo Olympics qualification date inches closer, Harmilan Bains will have to make best use of the opportunity in the final qualification event at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships in Patiala, Punjab. In the Road to Tokyo rankings, she is nowhere close to earning direct qualification for the Summer Games. So Harmilan's only hope right now is to breach the Olympic qualification mark.
If Harmilan Bains manages to achieve the 1500m Olympic qualification standard, she will simultaneously surpass the women's national record of 4:06.03 seconds set by Sunita Rani at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea.
Also Read: 30 days to Tokyo Olympics: Remembering Sriram Singh's heroics at the 1976 Montreal Olympics
Other athletes in contention for Tokyo Olympics berth
Indian star spinters Hima Das and Dutee Chand will give it one last attempt at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships to make the cut for the Tokyo Olympics 2020. At the Indian Grand Prix 4, Hima Das clocked 200m in 20.88 seconds, missing the qualification mark by 0.08 seconds, whereas Dutee Chand missed the cut off timing by 0.02 seconds despite setting the national record (11.17 seconds).
Women's Javelin Throw national record holder Annu Rani is eyeing to achieve an Olympic qualifying standard of 64.00m at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships. Discus thrower Seema Punia will look to qualify for her fourth Olympics in Tokyo by achieving the qualification mark of 63.50 meters.
The 4x100m women's relay team will have to improve their timing to qualify for the quadrennial event in Japan by breaking into the top 16 in World Athletics Rankings. They recently set a national record with a timing of 43.26 seconds. Kerala triple jumper Karthik Unnikrishnan has his eyes set on breaching the Olympic qualification mark of 17.14 meters.
Also Read: What India needs to do to produce world-class track and field athletes regularly
Who are your favorites to make an impression at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships?
