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Indian long jumper Ancy Sojan said her record-breaking performance at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships, where she eclipsed Anju Bobby George's 22-year-old national record, reflects India's growing stature in world-class athletics.
She added that her focus is on maintaining consistency and winning a gold medal at the Asian Games. In the long jump, Ancy, 25, made a sensational leap of 6.88 m, outdoing Anju's long-held national record of 6.83 m, which was made during the 2004 Athens Olympics. "This is a statement that we are also growing like world-class jumpers. I want to be consistent like this. It is the result of hard work that I got my first international medal after 10 years. I want to win a gold medal in the Asian Games," she told ANI. Maharashtra's seasoned high jumper Sarvesh Anil Kushare, 31, was the second athlete on Saturday who etched his name in record books as he improved the men's high jump record to 2.31m. The previous national record of 2.29m was set by Tejaswin Shankar in 2018. Sarvesh further raised the bar to 2.35m but wasn't successful. Speaking to ANI, Kushare said he is happy to have set a new national record of 2.31m but is aiming for even better performances. He said his focus is now on preparing for the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games and expressed his ambition to win a gold medal. "I set a national record of 2.31m, but I am not fully satisfied yet. I want to perform even better going forward. My full focus will now be on the upcoming Asian Games and Commonwealth Games. Since both competitions are coming up within a month, the main focus will be on training, assessing the current situation and determining the level of preparation required. It was everyone's support that enabled me to set this national record today. I aim to win a gold medal," he said. Notably, several athletes like Dev Meena (pole vault men's), Jyothi Yarraji (women's 100 m hurdles), Anushka Yadav (hammer throw women's), and Mohammed Afsal (800 m men's) are among the athletes who have secured an Asian Games spot through their performances at the championships taking place from June 24 to 28 in Kalinga Stadium at Bhubaneswar. (ANI)
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