IAAF U-20 Worlds: India have only Hima Das’s gold, a personal best, one national record to show

Of the 31 Indian athletes that participated in the Athletics Under-20 World Championships in Tampere, Finland, Hima Das was the only medallist as she became the fourth person to win gold for India at the competition.

Das, 18, was also the first ever track medallist for India at any global meet and the second U-20 gold winner after Neeraj Chopra, who had triumphed in the javelin throw event in 2016. India finished 18th in the overall standings, with one gold to its name.

Shot-putter Ashish Bhalothia was the only one in the 31-strong contingent who bettered his personal best, while Sahil Silwal and Kamalraj Kanagaraj bagged the fourth and fifth places respectively in the javelin throw and triple jump finals.

The women’s 4X400 metres relay team also set a new Under-20 national record, clocking a time of 3:39.10 seconds, bettering the old one set in 2002. Most Indian athletes didn’t get close to their personal or seasonal bests, finishing way off their own marks.

Ankit in the men’s 1,500 metres, M Karuniya in the women’s discus throw, Arshdeep Singh in the men’s javelin throw, Beant Singh in the men’s 1,500 metres and Damneet Singh in the men’s hammer throw showed a sizeable deviation from their bests.