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Uttarakhands Lili Das clinched the womens 800m title at the Indian Athletics Final Series with a strong performance at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, clocking 2:03.41 to finish ahead of Haryanas Pooja and Tamil Nadus Gowthami Jayaraman.
Pooja secured the silver medal with a time of 2:04.02, while Gowthami completed the podium after finishing third with 2:05.63. The victory came after a challenging phase for Lili, who missed out on Asian Games selection while recovering from a hamstring injury. Reflecting on her journey, the athlete said her preparations during the qualification period were affected due to rehabilitation. "Actually, I did try. I tried during MayJune at the Asian Games qualifiers in Bhubaneswar. But at that time, my training wasn't at the level it should have been. Compared to where it is now, I didn't have as much training then because I was undergoing rehabilitation, and I had to manage training alongside that," Lili told reporters. She revealed that she suffered a Grade 2 hamstring tear just days before the start of the season, which disrupted her training and competition plans. "I suffered the injury right during the season, at the end of March. At that time, the season opener was in Bengaluruthe Open Series 1 competition. That was supposed to be the start of my participation, but just six days before that, I suffered a Grade 2 hamstring tear," she said. Lili added that balancing rehabilitation, training and competitions was a difficult task, but she continued to push herself with the support of her team. "On top of that, I also had to compete in the Open Series. I had to balance and look after everything in between. Because of that, after my injury, I was only able to train for about 20 to 25 or 30 days," she added. The 800m runner said she gave her best effort during the Asian Games trials but had to withdraw from the 1500m event after aggravating her hamstring. "Everyone really supported me. They tried very hard and gave me a lot of motivation, encouraging me to try as best as I could. I pushed hard in the 800m, which is why I had to pull out of the 1500m race, because my hamstring gave out after the 800m," Lili said. Despite the setback, Lili said she has moved on and is now focused on future competitions, including the World Championships and Asian Championships next year. "I gave it my best effort. My physio, my sponsorseveryone supported me. Unfortunately, it didn't work out, but that's okay. I'm focusing on the upcoming competitions now. Next year, for the World Championships and Asian Championships, I will prepare for those. What has passed won't come back, so I'm not dwelling on it anymore," she concluded. (ANI)
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