Competition on the first day of the seventh Asian Indoor Athletics Championships saw seven finals held, two for men and five for women. The men’s finals came in the high jump and the 60m dash. In the 60m, Iran’s Hassan Hussein took first place and the gold medal in 6.56 seconds, his compatriot Reza Ghasemi came second in 6.60 seconds, and the Philippines’ Eric Cray finished third in 6.70 seconds. In the women’s competitions, in the long jump, India’s Jonny Mayookha took first place with a distance of 6.35m to win gold, Vietnam’s Bui Thi Thu Thao came second with 6.30m, and Olympic champion Olga Rypakova of Kazakhstan finished third to take bronze.
In the 1500m, the UAE’s Betlhem Desalegn took gold after covering the distance in 4:21.65, Bahrain’s Bilie Gashaw came second in 4:22.17 to take silver, while bronze went to India’s Kumari Sivagandha in 4:29.06.
China’s women dominated the pole vault and the shot put. In the pole vault, Li Ling took gold with a distance of 4.70m, compatriot Ren Mingyan came second with 4.30m, and Japan’s Tomomi Abiko finished third with 4.15m.
In the shot put, China’s Gong Lijiao took first place and gold with a distance of 18.06m, compatriot Ju Tianjin came second with 17.44m, and Bahrain’s Nora Jassim finished third with 16.26m.
In this event, Qatar’s promising athlete Sara Ahmed Al Manai finished seventh with 11.08.
In the 60m, Kazakhstan claimed its first gold medal of the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships through champion Viktoriya Zyabkina, who took first place in the women’s 60m, while India’s Jonny Mayookha shone in the long jump, managing to win gold after eliminating Asian record holder Olga Rypakova of Kazakhstan, who finished third for bronze, while Vietnam’s Bui Thi Thu Thao took silver. The Indian recorded (6.35m) to claim gold, Vietnam’s Bui recorded (6.30m), and Kazakhstan’s Rypakova took bronze with (6.22m). In the shot put, China won gold through champion Gong Lijiao, who took first place with (18.06m), compatriot Ju Tianjin came second with (17.44m), and Bahrain’s Nora Jassim finished third for bronze with (16.26m).
In the pole vault, China continued to lead the way in gold, with Li Ling taking first place with (4.70m), compatriot Ren Mingyan taking second and silver with (4.30m), and Japan taking third and bronze through champion Tomomi Abiko with (4.15m).
Disqualification of Qatar’s Samuel and Tosin
The Asian Indoor Athletics Championships saw two of Qatar’s champions disqualified from the 60m, Samuel Francis and Tosin Ogunode, with the disqualification of the two Qatari champions coming because of a false start at the semi-final stage of the race, costing Qatar their presence in the final, which was topped by Philippine champion Eric Cray, who finished first in (6.57 seconds), with Iran’s Reza Ali Ghasemi second in (6.69 seconds), and India’s Fadlin third in (6.74 seconds).
