Chennai, Aug 20 (IANS) The first day of the 64th National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships saw records tumble in the women’s 5000m and in men’s pole vault as the event got underway on a positive note at Jawaharlal Stadium here on Wednesday.

It was Seema, who hails from Himachal Pradesh, who powered to gold in the women’s 5000m, clocking 15:42.64 to eclipse the previous meet record of 15:46.92 set by L. Suriya in 2017. Ravina Gayakwad (16:53.24) and Sanghamitra Mahata (18:04.36) finished second and third, respectively.

The women’s 5000m national record of 15:10.35 belongs to Parul Chaudhary, who is not competing at the Inter-State Championships. Seema’s time was nowhere close to Parul’s record, which was still a confidence booster for her for the upcoming events in the season.

The men’s pole vault also produced a record as Reegan G and M Gowtham cleared 5.20m distances to share the gold medal. The previous record of 5.11m in the name of S. Siva was set in 2023 in Bhubaneswar. In the women’s 400m semis, Gujarat’s Devyaniba Zala topped the chart with a time of 53.26 seconds.

It was also a good event for the hosts as Tamil Nadu’s sprinters stole the show—winning both the 100m dash in the men’s and women’s sections—on the opening day of the competition.

Tamil Arasu, 23, rocketed off the blocks and shifted into top gear to outduel his rivals. His gold-winning time of 10.22 seconds was better than the previous meet record of 10.27 seconds set by Punjab’s Gurindervir Singh in 2021. While former national record holder Manikanta Hoblidhar, representing Karnataka, was second with a time of 10.35 seconds.

The results of the men’s semis, held nearly two hours before the final, gave a glimpse of the podium finish. Going by the timings, it was obvious that the final showdown would be between Arasu and Hoblidhar.

The women’s 100m title went to Tamil Nadu’s experienced sprinter Dhana Lakshmi, whose winning time was 11.36 seconds. While teenage sprinting prodigy Abhinaya Rajarajan settled for second place with a time of 11.58 seconds.

Racing below 54 seconds in the semis has certainly brightened Devyaniba’s chances of a podium finish. But she will have to battle it out with seasoned runners like MR Poovamma, who finished second in the other semis with a time of 54.52 seconds. Tamil Nadu’s promising one-lap runner, Vishal T.K., will be one to watch in the final on Thursday. He posted the best time of 45.78 in the semis.

Results

Men

100m: Tamil Arasu (TN) 10.22 seconds (meet record; previous record of 10.27 seconds was set by Gurindervir Singh in 2021), Manikanta Hoblidhar (Karnataka) 10.35 seconds, Ragul Kumar (10.40 seconds).

10,000m: Abhishek Pal (Uttar Pradesh) 30:56.64, Shivaji Parashu (Karnataka) 30:57.69, Shivam (Uttar Pradesh) 30:59.14.

Pole vault: Reegan G (Tamil Nadu) 5.20m (meet record, previous record of 5.11m by S Siva in 2023 in Bhubaneswar), M Gowtham (Tamil Nadu) 5.20m, Kamal L (Tamil Nadu) 5m.

Women:

100m: Dhana Lakshmi (TN) 11.36 seconds, Abhinaya Rajarajan (Tamil Nadu) 11.58 seconds, Sneha SS (Kerala) 11.61 seconds.

5000m: Seema (HP) 15:42.64 seconds (meet record, previous record 15:46.92 set by L Surya in 2017), Ravina Gayakwad (Maharashtra) 16:53.24 seconds, Sanghamitra M (Jharkhand) 18:04.36 seconds.

Triple jump: Sandra Babu (Kerala) 13.20m, Aleena Saji (Kerala) 13.15m, Niharika Vashisht (Punjab) 13.09m.

Hammer Throw: Tanya Chaudhary (Uttar Pradesh) 63.91m, Divya Shandilya (Odisha) 59.58m. Maya (Rajasthan) 57.57m.

–IANS

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