'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
India’s national record holder in men's 400m, Muhammed Anas, will miss the first leg of the Indian Grand Prix (IGP) due to an injury. The cream of Indian track and field athletes has descended on Thiruvananthapuram to compete in this event on Sunday. The one-day competition will be held at Thiruvananthapuram’s Chandrasekharan Nair Police Stadium.
Muhammed Anas was a member of the Indian men’s 4x400m relay squad that set the Asian record last year at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Muhammed Anas has been a member of a core group of elite athletes and has been practicing in the national camp since October last.
Other top athletes in action
The other three runners of the Tokyo Olympic Games national relay team, Amoj Jacob, Noah Nirmal Tom, and Arokia Rajiv, have confirmed their entry for Sunday’s competition.
The main focus during the one-day meeting will be a quarter-miler in both men's and women’s group. The 400m is one of the main events of the Athletics Federation of India (AFI). The top three positions in the men’s 400m race on Sunday are expected to come from amongst the national campers.
However, the battle for supremacy in the women’s 400m race will be between Karnataka’s Priya H Mohan and a core group of athletes in the camp. Seasoned 400m runners MR Poovamma and Dandi Jyothika Sri will be the main contestants in the 400m race.
Anjali Devi, one of India’s leading female 400m runners, is on the injured list and will skip the IGP.
The javelin throw event will also be in the spotlight. All eyes will be on promising throwers Rohit Yadav and Sahil Silwal and on whether they will be able to cross the 80m barrier on Sunday. The duo are in the national camp in Patiala. Sharmila Kumari will be the main attraction in the women’s javelin throw.
As many as 90 athletes, including 30 female competitors, will be seen in action in the first leg of the IGP. Sadly, Muhammed Anas, who would have been a star attraction, would not be competing.
