The Indian women’s and men’s 4×400-metre relay teams qualified for the Olympics in Paris with strong performances on Monday at the World Athletics Relays.
In their heat, the women’s quartet—Rupal Chaudhary, M R Poovamma, Jyothika Sri Dandi, and Subha Venkatesan—finished second with a timing of 3 minutes and 29.35 seconds, just behind Jamaica’s 3:28.54. Their qualifying for the future Olympic Games was guaranteed by this outcome.
In a similar vein, the men’s team, which included Amoj Jacob, Arokia Rajiv, Muhammad Anas Yahiya, and Muhammad Ajmal, placed second in their heat with a timing of 3 minutes and 3.23 seconds, trailing only the USA (2:59.95). The automatic qualification for the Paris Olympics, which are set to take place from July 26 to August 11, was given to the top two teams in each of the three heats of the second round.
With a time of 3 minutes and 29.74 seconds, the Indian women’s team placed sixth in the first-round qualifying heat on Sunday. Due to cramping, second leg runner Rajesh Ramesh had to withdraw from the men’s team before their first-round qualifying heat could be completed.
With the men’s and women’s 4×400-metre relay teams qualifying successfully, India now has 19 track and field competitors guaranteed seats in the Paris Olympics.
Neeraj Chopra, the current javelin throw champion, is on this list with other gifted sportsmen. On August 1, the Paris Games’ athletics competition is scheduled to get off, kicking off an exciting and eagerly awaited sport.
