Mayookha Johny wins gold for India in athletics

21 February,2016 09:12 AM IST |   |  PTI

Long jumper Mayookha Johny fetched India a gold medal, while sprinter Dutee Chand settled for a bronze after shattering national record in 60m dash in the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships on Saturday.

Indiau00c3u00a2u00c2u0080u00c2u0099s Mayookha Johny competes in the final of the womenu00c3u00a2u00c2u0080u00c2u0099s triple jump event during the 17th Asian Games at Incheon in 2014. Pic/AFP


Doha: Long jumper Mayookha Johny fetched India a gold medal, while sprinter Dutee Chand settled for a bronze after shattering national record in 60m dash in the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships on Saturday.


India's Mayookha Johny competes in the final of the women's triple jump event during the 17th Asian Games at Incheon in 2014. Pic/AFP

Mayookha controlled the long jump competition from the very outset and finished on top of the podium with a leap of 6.35m, an effort that propelled her to India's first Asian indoor title in the event. Bui Thi Thu Thao of Vietnam took the silver with a 6.30m jump while Olga Rypakova of Kazakhstan finished third with an effort of 6.22m. "Winning in Doha made me really happy, especially since I'm not used to competing indoors. However, I expected something better than 6.35m. But I'm not complaining at all. The Asian title is quite an achievement," said Mayookha after winning the gold.

Another Indian, M A Prajusha finished fifth with a jump of 6.15m.

Dutee won a bronze in women's 60m dash with a time of 7.37 secs in the final.

Earlier, she had set a national record while winning her heats in 7.28 secs. Viktoriya Zyabkina of Kazakhstan overcame a sluggish start to win the final race in a Championship record of 7.27 secs, well clear of China's Yuan Qiqi (7.33 secs).Sugandha Kumari brought the third medal for India as she won a bronze in women's 1500m with a time of 4:29.06.

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