The penultimate day of the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition in Ranchi turned into a spectacular showcase for India's field athletes as Dev Kumar Meena and Kuldeep Kumar jointly rewrote the national record in men's pole vault. Competing under pressure at the Birsa Munda Stadium, both Madhya Pradesh vaulters cleared 5.45m to surpass the previous national record of 5.41m set recently by Kuldeep Kumar in Bhubaneswar.
However, Dev Kumar Meena clinched gold on countback, while Kuldeep settled for silver despite achieving the same height. The performances also comfortably bettered the Commonwealth Games qualification standard of 5.25m, making both athletes eligible for Glasgow 2026 selection.
Dev Kumar Meena & Kuldeep Kumar Push Indian Pole Vault to New Heights
The competition marked one of the finest
days in Indian pole vault history. Training together and constantly pushing each other, both Dev Kumar and Kuldeep delivered career-best performances while raising Indian standards in the discipline.
The previous Federation Cup meet record of 5.35m was also erased during the competition. That mark had been set by Dev Kumar Meena himself last year.
After the event, Dev Kumar highlighted the role of their rivalry and friendship in driving performances higher. "It was a good day for us and we will continue to push each other to further raise the bar in future," Dev Kumar said after securing gold. Tamil Nadu's Reegan G finished third with a clearance of 5.15m.
Murali Sreeshankar Achieves Commonwealth Games Qualification
India's star long jumper Murali Sreeshankar continued his impressive return by winning the men's long jump gold with a best effort of 8.08m.
The jump helped him breach the Commonwealth Games qualification standard of 8.05m and confirmed his strong comeback to top-level competition.
S Lokesh finished second with 7.94m, while Mohd Atta Sazid claimed bronze with 7.90m.
Sarvesh Kushare Equals Meet Record, Targets National Mark
In the men's high jump, Maharashtra athlete Sarvesh Anil Kushare dominated the field with a gold-medal-winning jump of 2.28m.
The mark equalled the Federation Cup meet record previously set by Tejaswin Shankar and also comfortably cleared the CWG qualification standard of 2.22m.
Sarvesh even attempted 2.30m in pursuit of a new national record, but narrowly missed all three attempts.
Tamil Nadu's Aadarsh Ram also achieved the Commonwealth Games qualification standard after clearing 2.22m to take silver.
Tejas Shirse Improves Meet Record in 110m Hurdles
Tejas Ashok Shirse once again proved his dominance in men's hurdles after winning the 110m hurdles final in 13.50 seconds.
The Reliance athlete improved his own meet record of 13.61s, although he narrowly missed the Commonwealth Games qualification mark of 13.39s.
Krishik M finished second with 13.52s, while Muhammed Lazan secured bronze in 13.83s.
Ravina Secures CWG Qualification in Race Walk
The morning session saw Haryana's Ravina achieve the Commonwealth Games qualification mark in the women's 10,000m race walk.
She clocked 44:29.66 to finish first and comfortably better the qualification standard of 44:44.58.
Reshma Patel and Munita Prajapati completed the podium positions.
Rahul Baloda Wins Men's 1500m Gold
Rajasthan's Rahul Baloda secured gold in the men's 1500m after clocking 3:40.06.
Sakir and Ajay Kumar Saroj finished second and third, respectively, though none of the runners came close to the demanding CWG qualification mark.
Day Dominated by India's Field Athletes
After the sprint-heavy excitement of Saturday, Sunday firmly belonged to India's field event stars.
From national records in pole vault to Commonwealth Games qualification performances in long jump, high jump and race walk, the Federation Cup once again showcased the rapidly rising standards of Indian athletics ahead of Glasgow 2026.
