Current Affairs - Athletics

Recently, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) initiated 'Halla Bol' short movie series, part of the 'Cheer4India' campaign, spotlighting the journey of Asian Games-bound athletes and fostering enthusiasm for the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games.

Key Points:

• Inspiring Athletes and Youth: The series intends to uplift both Asian Games athletes and the younger generation, encouraging them to engage in sports.
• 19th Edition of Asian Games: As the Indian contingent prepares for the 19th edition of the Asian Games, the 'Halla Bol' series offers insights into the dedicated efforts and aspirations of talented athletes representing the country.
• Continuation of a Tradition: The 'Halla Bol' series follows the precedent set by 'Olympics ki Aasha,' a similar movie series launched prior to the Tokyo Olympics, further bolstering the spirit of athletes and promoting sports across India.

PM Modi lauded the Indian contingent for their outstanding performance at the 25th Asian Athletics Championships held in Bangkok, Thailand.

Key Points:

• Record-Breaking Medal Haul: The Indian team made history by securing a total of 27 medals at the championship, the highest ever achieved by the country on foreign soil in this prestigious tournament.
• Impressive Third-Place Finish: India's remarkable performance earned them the third position in the overall standings, showcasing their prowess in the highly competitive event.
• Medal Breakdown: The Indian athletes claimed six gold, twelve silver, and nine bronze medals, exhibiting their excellence across various events.
• Japan Tops Medal Tally: While India secured a commendable third place, Japan topped the charts with an impressive total of 37 medals at the championships.

Tokyo Olympics champion Neeraj Chopra won the men's javelin silver at the World Athletics Championships 2022 held in Oregon, USA with a best throw of 88.13m in the final.

• He became only the 2nd Indian after Anju Bobby George (Bronze in Long Jump) to win a medal at the world meet.
• Grenada's Anderson Peters retained his gold medal with 90.54m throw.
• Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Jakub Vadlejch took bronze with a best throw of 88.09m.

The Khelo India Youth Games 2021 was hosted by Haryana from 4 -13 June 2022 across multiple venues with Panchkula hosting the bulk of the events. The Games are a part of the Indian government’s Khelo India initiative.

Top Three in the Medal Table

• Haryana won the Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2021 title with 52 gold medals, of which, 10 came in boxing on the final day. The late surge helped Haryana leapfrog the 2020 champions Maharashtra on the KIYG medals table. Haryana also won 39 silver and 46 bronze medals, taking their overall medal tally to 137 medals - the highest cumulative haul by any state.
• Maharashtra, meanwhile, managed 45 gold, 40 silver and 40 bronze medals to come second with 125 medals.
• Karnataka, with 22 gold, 17 silver and 28 bronze, finished third with 67 medals.

Noteworthy Individual Performances

• Among noteworthy individual performances, Maharashtra’s Sanyukta Kale swept all the five gold medals on offer in rhythmic gymnastics.
• Weightlifter Harshada Garud broke the youth national record in the girls’ 45kg category by lifting 83kg to win the gold.

The quadrennial Deaflympics 2021 was held at Festa da Uva Main Pavilion in the city of Caxias do Sul in southern Brazil from 1 May to 15 May 2022.

• The name chosen for the mascot was ‘Nino’, means: priceless, worthy of appreciation, cheerful, happy, very lucky, auspicious.
• India finished ninth in the Deaflympics 2021 medals tally. Ukraine led the table with 61 golds (along with 38 silvers and 38 bronze and an overall tally of 137).
• In the 2021 edition, India recorded their best performance at the Deaflympics by winning 17 medals, including 8- gold, 1- silver, and 8- bronze.
• India's previous best came at Sofia (1993) when they bagged seven medals, including 5 gold and 2 bronze.

Top Indian discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) after testing positive for a banned steroid (Stanozolol), which is a breach of the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules.

• A provisional suspension is when an athlete or other person is suspended temporarily from participating in any competition or activity in athletics prior to a final decision at a hearing conducted under the World Athletics Anti-doping rules or the integrity code of conduct.
• Kaur faces the prospect of being banned for a maximum period of four years if she is found guilty.
• Kaur had finished sixth in the Tokyo Olympics last year. She also holds the national record of 65.06m which she had achieved last year.

Brief about Winners

Avani Lekhara

• Avani Lekhara (from Jaipur, Rajasthan) won the first gold medal for India at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020 in the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 event.
• She became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in shooting at an Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Sumit Antil

• Sumit Antil (from Sonepat in Haryana) won gold medal in men’s javelin throw F64 final event.
• He also set a new world record throw of 68.55m.

Bhavina Patel

• Bhavina Patel (from Ahmedabad, Gujarat) won a Silver medal in the table tennis event at Tokyo Paralympics. Bhavina lost to China’s Ying Zhou in the final.
• She is the first-ever Indian para-athlete, male or female, to win a Paralympics medal in table tennis.
• She also became the second female athlete to win a medal at the Paralympic Games after Deepa Malik won Silver at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.

Nishad Kumar

• Nishad Kumar from Una, Himachal Pradesh made his maiden Paralympic Games appearance in 2020 Tokyo representing India and went onto claim silver medal in the men's high jump T47 category with a new Asian record of 2.06m.

Yogesh Kathuniya

• Yogesh Kathuniya won a silver medal in the men’s Discus Throw F56 final event with a throw of 44.38m.

Devendra Jhajharia

• Devendra Jhajharia won the silver medal in the men’s javelin throw – F46 final event with his best throw of 64.35.

Sundar Singh Gurjar

• Sundar Singh Gurjar won the bronze medal, in the men’s javelin throw – F46 final with his best throw of 64.01.

Singhraj Adhana

• Singhraj Adhana won the bronze medal in men's 10m Air Pistol (SH1) event.

• Neeraj Chopra won a gold medal with a throw of 87.58m in the men’s javelin throw final at the Tokyo Olympics.
• J. Vadlejch (86.67 m) and V. Veselý (85.44 m) from Czech Republic won the Silver and Bronze respectively.
• Neeraj Chopra is the first track and field athlete to win an Olympic gold medal for India, and is the second Olympic athletics medal winner for India after Norman Pritchard, who won two silver medals at the 1900 Summer Olympics.
• For his contribution to sports, he was given Arjuna Award in 2018.

Men’s: Marcell Jacobs

• Italy's Marcell Jacobs won the men's 100m gold at Tokyo Olympics.
• He is the first Italian to take the most coveted title in athletics and doing it with a huge European record of 9.80 seconds.
• American Fred Kerley took silver in a personal best 9.84 with Canada's Andre de Grasse repeating his bronze of 2016 in 9.89.
• He is also the first 100m champion after the retirement of Jamaican Usain Bolt who won Gold in three consecutive Olympics (2008, 2012 and 2016).

Note: China's Su Bingtian became the first Asian man to reach the Olympic 100 metres final for 89 years, scorching to an Asian record of 9.83 in his semi-final. The last Asian to appear in the final was Japan's Taka Yoshioka, who came last in the 1932 Los Angeles final.

Women’s: Elaine Thompson-Herah

• Jamaica's Elaine Thompson-Herah won the women's 100m final at Olympics.
• Jamaican women swept the podium, winning the silver and bronze medals too -Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won silver while Shericka Jackson won bronze.
• Jamaica's Elaine Thompson-Herah successfully defended her Olympic 100m crown with the second fastest time in history. Thompson-Herah raced over the line at Tokyo's Olympic Stadium in 10.61sec, with two-time champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce taking silver in 10.74 and Shericka Jackson bronze in 10.76.
• Thompson-Herah's Olympic record winning mark matched the second-fastest time in history of 10.61 set by the late Florence Griffith-Joyner.
• Only Griffith-Joyner, the 1988 Olympic champion who remains the world record holder with a best 10.49, has ever run faster.

• Yuto Horigome of Japan claimed the first Olympic gold medal in skateboarding after the introduction of this game for the first time in Tokyo Olympics.