Dutee sets track ablaze

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 29

Indian sprinting ace Dutee Chand hogged the limelight on her first day of competition, winning the women’s 100m in a new Indian Universities meet record time of 11.49s on the penultimate day of the inaugural Khelo India University Games at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar today.

Dutee Chand also owns the Indian universities’ all-time record of 11.32s, which she clocked to win the World University Games gold medal last year.

“I was not expecting to go much faster in my first competition after the off-season. I am happy with the 11.49, though I would have liked a sub-11.40 to begin with,” she said, having clocked 11.61 in the heats in the morning.

Dutee is chasing the Olympic qualifying standard of 11.20s to secure a ticket to the Tokyo Games. “The corona virus and the resulting travel regulations make me unsure if I will get to compete in Europe. I guess I will have to seek the Olympic qualifying time in an Indian competition this season,” Dutee said, sporting a wide grin as she walked to the warm-up track for a recovery session in preparation of the 200m sprint on Sunday.

Pune varsity stays on top

Meanwhile, Greco-Roman wrestler Saddam Kasim Shaikh, who won 60kg competition, was Savitribai Phule Pune University’s only gold medal winner on Saturday.

Saddam’s effort helped Pune University stay at the top with 16 gold medals. Panjab University with 15 gold medals is second. Punjabi University (10), Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU), Rohtak, (9) and Jain University (8) complete the top five.

LPU jodokas shine

At the Saheed Nagar Stadium, Lovely Professional University (LPU) judokas won two gold medals to see their institution finish on top of the heap with three gold.

Ritik (men’s +100kg) and Anmol (women’s 78kg) topped the podium on a day when Deendayal Upadhyaya University and University of Delhi claimed one gold medal each.

Narendra, Jyoti triumph

Back on the athletics track, Narendra Pratap Singh (Mangalore University) and Jyoti (Panjab University) completed their respective long distance doubles, winning the 5000m gold today.

Not to be left behind, PO Sayna added the 400m hurdles gold to the quarter-mile title she won on Friday.

Punjabi University’s Harmilan Bains then added the 800m crown to the 1500m gold she won yesterday. She showed keen race tactics, first avoiding being bottled, then pulling away from the leader Ladkat Yamuna of Savitribai Phule Pune University at the bell and cruising to victory.

Krishna races to gold

Krishna Kumar (Mangalore University) won the grueling decathlon, scoring 6,210 points over two days. G Kathiravan (Bharathidasan University) beat M Kartikeyan (Bharathiar University) in a photo-finish to win the men’s 100m gold in 10.68s. The duo was separated by three-thousandth of a second.

Monika wins gold

Panjab University pugilist Monika defeated Mewar University’s Soniya to win the gold medal in the women’s 51kg competition. BR Pavithra Raj of Madurai Kamaraj University and Deepa Kumari of Lovely Professional University claimed bronze medals each. In the 57kg class, Poonam of Guru Jambheshwar University got the better of Himachal Pradesh University’s Vinakshi in the title bout. Panjab University’s Jasmine and Aparajita Mani of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya University returned home with a bronze medal each.

PU boys settle for silver in tennis

Panjab University men’s tennis team claimed the silver medal on the penultimate day of the Khelo India University Games. In the final, Panjab University team comprising Neeraj Yashpaul, Udit Kamboj, Parav Dev Garg and Prateek went down 1-2 to Madras University. Earlier, in the semifinals, the side had defeated Gujarat University 2-0.

Khelo india university games

Final results

Athletics Men 100m 1. G Kathiravan (Bharathidasan University) 2. M Karthikeyan (Bharathiar University) 3. A Vignesh (Mangalore University) 800m 1. Gaurav Yadav (Periyar University) 2. Chaitanya Vilas Holgare (Pune University)

3. Gourav Sharma (Jiwaji University) 5000m 1. Narendra Pratap Singh (Mangalore University) 2. Adesh (Mangalore University) 3. Kisan Narsi Tadvi (Pune University) 400m Hurdles 1. D Amarnath (Rani Channamma University)

2. Manjeet (Guru Jambheshwar University) 3. Abhay Narayan Yadav (Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia University) Pole Vault 1. Manish Singh (Rajiv Gandhi University) 2. P Gowtham (Bharathiar University) 3. Dheena Dhayalan (University of Madras) High Jump 1. Aadarsh Ram (University of Madras) 2. Alan Jose (University of Kerala) 3. T Aromal (Mangalore University) Discus Throw 1. Praveen Kumar Nehra (Maharaja Ganga Singh University) 2. Ujjwal (MDU)

3. Bhanu Sharma (University of Rajasthan) 4x100m Relay

1. Mahatma Gandhi University 2. Mangalore University

3. Bharathidasan University 20km Race Walk 1. Juned (Mangalore University) 2. Hardeep (MDU) 3. Neeraj Kumar Chaurasiya (Deendayal Upadhyaya University) Women 100m Dutee Chand (Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology) 2. S Dhanalakshmi (Mangalore Universitiy) 3. SS Sneha (Acharya Nagarjuna University) 800m 1. Harmilan Bains (Punjabi University)

2. Ladkar Yamuna (Pune University) 3. Gowthami (Bharathiar University) 5000m 1. Jyoti (PU) 2. Komal Jagdale (Pune University) 3. Sonika (MDU) 400m Hurdles 1. PO Sayana (University of Kerala)

2. Anjali Jose (Mahatma Gandhi University) 3. Nanhi (MDU) Discus Throw 1. Seema (Chaudhary Bansi Lal University) 2. Nidhi Rani (Mangalore University)

3. Bhavana Yadav (University of Delhi) 4x100m Relay Mahatma Gandhi University 2. PU

3. University of Calicut 20km Race Walk 1. Sonal Sukhwal (Mohanlal Sukhadia University) 2. Rakhi Kushbala (Prof. Rajendra Singh University)

3. Shivani (Rajiv Gandhi University)