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Media Bulletin No. 3: Throws Preview of the Metlife National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championship 2005 |
| June 28, 2005: Whenever you
hear deafening sound (other than announcement or band) in the stadium then
it has to be from throwing arena. Yes, throwing events in Athletics are
the best way to exhibit one's mightiness. Sree Kanteerava Stadium will
witness India's powerfully built athletes who will vie for the honor of
the "Strongest thrower of India" in 4 different categories and also to
confirm berth in the Indian team for the World Championship in Athletics.
Throwing in athletics consist of four different events i.e. Shot Put, Discus Throw, Javelin Throw and Hammer Throw. Each of these events has its own characteristic and shape of the equipment. Shot Put is 7.260kg iron ball for men while 4kg for women and discus weigh 2kg. for men and 1kg for women. Javelin is the lightest equipment of all throwing events but it has long length of 2.6m, weighing 800gm for men while 2.40m with weight of 600gm for women. Hammer throw is nothing but a chain attached to the 7.260kg iron ball for men and 4kg for women. It's the only throw event, which has its unique style of throwing. India has always dominated the shot put event at the Asian level since inception of Asian Games in 1951. Recently concluded Asian Grand Prix series had shown the domination of Indian Shot Putters. Navpreet Singh of Punjab (PB: 19.93M) who claimed gold at Indonesia and Songkhla Grand Prix is expected to continue with his 19+ throwing series as the Senior Nationals. But watch out for defending champion Ranvijay Singh from UP who has become the youngest Indian thrower to cross 20m barrier in Shot put with 20.26m and this year too, he is leading the table with an impressive season opener of 19.89m at Delhi. One more thrower is in the fray, none other than National record holder Shakti Singh, 43 year old who has a special liking towards shot put ring of the Sree Kanteerava Stadium as he had given his life best shot with a throw of 20.60m on 5th July 2000 but his performance could not ratified as the Asian Record due to technical snag. He still holds the Indian record with an impressive distance of 20.42m. He is on rank no. 4 this season with 18.58m. Will he capture his eighth gold in the shot put? Former Asian Champion Jagdish Bishnoi (PB: 79.67m) who has maximum throws over 75m this season to his credit is looking forward to 7th title in the Senior Nationals. He had won 2 silver medals in the Asian GP 2005 at Singapore and Songkhla. Jagdish is known for his last attempt throw where he can upset rivals with his spirited throw. He is the only thrower in India to throw Javelin over 75m in maximum number of times. Fazal Ansari, recovered from injury had challenged Jagdish with his 75+ throw at the Federation Cup while Sunil Goswami of Delhi could cause major upset in the javelin throw at the Bangalore Senior Nationals. Men's hammer throw will be another interesting event to witness where Kulwinder Singh is currently leading season with 66.03m. He is the only thrower who had thrown over 65m this season. Madhu Kumar (64.66m) and Harpal Singh are also expected to register their best. National Record holder Rakesh Kumar who was out of action due to injury is back to the arena. He had done 70.16m throw at the same venue on July 17,2003. In the absent of Vikas Gowda and Anil Kumar, new champion face will emerge in the men's Discus Throw where battle among Simranjeet Singh, Sukhbir Singh and Amritpal Singh is expected to generate good distance. In the women section, Discus throw event is expected to generate maximum heat, where India's top throwers who are also among World's top 100 throwers of this season will be seen in action. World rank No. 19 and Asian Games record holder Neelam Singh (PB: 64.55m) whose unbeaten run of this season is threatened by Harwant Kaur whose 62.89m throw at the Singapore Asian GP will stimulate to the already strong field filled with Krishna Punia (SB: 58.33m) and National Record holder Seema Antil (SB: 56.96m). From history books: If Adille Sumariwalla held a seven-in-a-row victory in men's 100m, it was Bengal's Subrata Debnath in women's shot put having an amazing record of eight-in-a-row titles in the inter-state championships by virtually ruled the national meet from 1971 to 1978. Amandeep Kaur won 5 times while Kamlesh Chatwal, Bhaktawar Khambatta and Vijayamala Bhanot did so with four individual crowns each. Undisputedly, Neelam Jaswant Singh secured the 'most titles' in the above championships with stunning 12 victories in the discus throw. Kamlesh Chatwal and Anusuya Bai won in 5 meets while Vijayamala claimed one gold less! In the javelin sector, Razia Sheikh grabbed 9 medals on yellow metal. V.A. Mary and Gurbans Kaur annexed 6 each while Gurmeet Kaur was one short! Among the men, Bahadur Singh (who had later become the national coach) tossed the iron ball to better distances to claim the top spot on 11 occasions. Iron-man Shakti Singh dominated the scene with 7 victories during the season 1994-2003. Early leaders Joginder and Jagarj Singh registered 5 wins each during their tenure. On the discus throw circle, Mahabharat-fame "Bhim" Praveen Kumar stood top of the podium 6 times besides 5 golds, which he earned in hammer throw. Bahadur Singh settled with 5 titles in discus throw. In the hammer ring, Raghubir Singh Bal conquered 7 gold medals. Besides Praveen's 5 titles Pramod Tiwari's 4 wins also notable in the ball and chain event. Spear-hunter Jagdish Bishnoi lived up to his name with 6 numero uno finish in the javelin throw to date. With his tremendous form, he is expected to add his tally in the days to come. Satbir Singh Saran had 4 impressive throws titles on his name. With inputs from Ram. Murali Krishnan Rahul Pawar Athletics Federation of India |