Rezoana Mallick Heena crowned women’s 400m champion at Asian U20 Athletics Championship

Talented Indian sprinter Rezoana Mallick Heena was crowned women’s 400m champion on the opening day of the Asian U20 Athletics Championship in Yecheon, South Korea on Sunday.

Within a span of nine weeks, Rezoana has added a second Asian title to her kitty. In April she won the Asian U18 400m gold in Tashkent.

Rezoana's consistent performance of going below 54 seconds in two 400m races on Sunday speaks volumes of her talent. After clocking 53.51 seconds in the morning session in her heat, she raced to win the gold medal with a time of 53.31 seconds in the evening session.

India's second gold of the day came in the men’s discus throw when Bhartpreet Singh hurled the disc to a distance of 55.66m in his third attempt.

Bhartpreet Singh, who won the gold in the men’s discus throw with a distance of 55.66m said he was confident of winning the title.

“The preparation had gone on expected lines in the national camp in Bengaluru and there was no injury issue,” the Jalandhar based thrower from Punjab said.

He added that he could have done better but the local weather was a bit windy during the competition.

“I could have crossed my personal best of 56.18m during the competition but the windy conditions denied that chance."

Other Indian athletes at Asian U20 Athletics Championship

Earlier, Antima Pal won a bronze medal in the women's 5000m. She clocked 17 minutes and 17.11 seconds. Bushra Khan Gauri finished fifth with a time of 18:15.98 secs.

Japan’s Nanaka Yonezawa won the gold medal with a time of 16:37.36 secs, while compatriot Akari Matsumoto clinched silver with a time of 16:42.21 secs.

In the men’s 800m heats, both Shyam Milan Bind and Shakeel advanced to the medal round scheduled for Monday. Shyam Milan Bind clocked 1:52.62 secs to finish third in his 800m heat, while Shakeel clocked 1:51.58 secs to finish second in his heat.

India's Vidhi finished fourth in the women's shot put with a throw of 15.16m. In the women’s 100m heats, Abinaya Rajarajan advanced to the final scheduled for Monday. In her heat, she clocked 11.91 secs.

However, it was a disappointing day for pole vaulter Dev Kumar Meena. He couldn’t clear the bar at 4.50m in all three attempts and failed to progress.

Due to technical reasons, Dev Kumar Meena’s equipment wasn’t allowed in the luggage from New Delhi to Seoul. The promising pole vaulter from Madhya Pradesh wasn’t able to make the best use of borrowed poles — the organiser made arrangements — and he bowed out early in the competition.