Bhubaneswar, May 2 (IANS) Kuldeep Kumar, representing Madhya Pradesh, won a battle of wits to set the national men’s pole vault record on the opening day of the inaugural Indian Indoor Open Combined Events and Pole Vault Competition at the Indoor Stadium in Bhubaneswar on Saturday.

The 21-year-old cleared the height of 5.41m in his first attempt to better the national record of 5.40m set last year by Dev Kumar Meena. Kuldeep Kumar also improved the national indoor record of 5.30m set earlier in March by Reegan G of Tamil Nadu. The newly-crowned champion missed all three attempts at 5.46m. “It was a good day for me,” says Kuldeep Kumar after breaking the national record.

Dev Kumar Meena was in good form. Earlier this year, he had equalled his national record (5.40m) in March in Taiwan. He was the pre-event favourite but settled for the bronze medal on Saturday.

It was the first indoor competition for Kuldeep Kumar. He found it challenging to get a good rhythm on the fast Mondo track here at Bhubaneswar’s indoor stadium. “It was a good experience today,” says Kuldeep Kumar. The contest for the gold medal was between three athletes—Dev Kumar Meena, Kuldeep Kumar, and Reegan G.

As the competition progressed, Dev Kumar Meena struggled and settled for bronze (5.20m). Reegan G made attempts to cross 5.35m, but missed all three chances. He settled for silver (5.25m).

Kuldeep Kumar cleared 5.35m in his second attempt. It gave a big boost to his confidence. He raised the bar to 5.41m, setting a positive tone for the major outdoor domestic competition at the end of May in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

The pre-event favourite and former national record holder, Dev Kumar Meena, says it wasn’t his day. But I was excited that the bar was raised to 5.41m. “It is always good to aim for new goals,” says Dev Kumar Meena of the national record set by Kuldeep Kumar. Both Dev Kumar Meena and Kuldeep Kumar practice at the same venue in Madhya Pradesh.

The upcoming outdoor season will be more exciting. The top three pole vaulters here in Bhubaneswar will be aiming to earn a place in the national team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Asian Games in Japan.

An exciting contest was also witnessed in the heptathlon. Thowfeeq N. of NCOE Trivandrum was leading on the first day with 2943 points. Odisha’s Jashbir Nayak was close behind at second place with 2927 points.

Day One events in the heptathlon were 60m, long jump, shot put, and high jump. The Day Two events will be 60m hurdles, pole vault, and 1000 m.

Results:

Men:

Pole vault: Kuldeep Kumar (Madhya Pradesh) 5.41m (NR), Reegan G (Tamil Nadu) 5.25m, Dev Kumar Meena (Madhya Pradesh) 5.20m.

Men: U20: Pole vault: Kavinraja S (Tamil Nadu) 4.90m, R Vishal (Tamil Nadu) 4.70m, Saurabh Yadav (Uttar Pradesh) 4.20m.

–IANS

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