Bhubaneswar, June 27: The 65th National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships exploded into life on Saturday evening as two long-standing national records tumbled at the Kalinga Stadium, headlined by Kerala's Ancy Sojan rewriting Indian athletics history in the women's long jump.
After a relatively quiet third day, the championship witnessed a memorable evening session as Ancy shattered the legendary Anju Bobby George's 22-year-old national record, while Maharashtra's Sarvesh Anil Kushare set a new benchmark in the men's high jump.
Ancy Sojan Enters Record Books
Asian Games medallist Ancy Sojan produced the performance of her career, soaring to 6.88m in her fifth attempt to erase Anju Bobby George's national record of 6.83m, which had stood since 2004.
The 25-year-old Kerala
athlete had already secured qualification for the 2026 Asian Games with her opening jump of 6.73m, but she was far from finished.
After recording jumps of 6.73m, no mark, 6.67m, and 6.72m in her first four attempts, Ancy unleashed a stunning leap of 6.88m in the fifth round. The moment the distance flashed on the electronic scoreboard, she knew history had been made.
Her celebrations were immediate as she sprinted towards her coach, Anup Joseph, standing beyond the fence, before embracing teammates and officials.
The achievement marked a remarkable progression for Ancy, who had recorded a personal best of 6.75m just weeks ago in Ranchi.
"I have been consistently doing well this season, but I am not content with this. My aim is to get past the 7.00m mark and I want to win gold in Japan and make my country proud," Ancy told myKhel after her historic performance.
A Record Dedicated to Her Father
For Ancy, the national record was more than just a personal milestone. The Kerala athlete dedicated the achievement to her father, whose dream was to see a member of the family become a national record holder.
"He wanted someone in the family to be a national record holder. This gold medal will be a precious gift to him," she said.
The record-breaking effort becomes even more remarkable considering the challenges she faced last year.
Ancy revealed that health issues forced her to take a break from competition, testing her mentally and physically.
"It was mentally and physically challenging. I'm happy to have made a comeback, that too ahead of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games," she added.
With the Asian Games scheduled to begin on September 19, Ancy has firmly established herself as India's biggest medal hope in the women's long jump.
Sarvesh Kushare Breaks Tejaswin Shankar's National Record
Minutes before Ancy's historic jump, Maharashtra's Sarvesh Anil Kushare produced a record-breaking performance of his own in the men's high jump.
The experienced jumper cleared 2.31m, surpassing the previous national record of 2.29m held by Tejaswin Shankar since 2018.
Sarvesh required three attempts to clear the record height before ambitiously raising the bar to 2.35m, though he was unable to negotiate it.
"I was feeling good. I got a big boost when I cleared 2.27m. Thereafter I pushed and made an attempt to break the national record," said Sarvesh.
The achievement carried extra significance given his friendship with Tejaswin Shankar, who now competes in Decathlon.
"I just had a video call with TJ. He was very happy for my achievement. Now I want to do well at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games," he added.
More Records Fall at Kalinga Stadium
The record-breaking spree was not limited to the field events. In the men's 1500m, Uttar Pradesh's Yoonus Shah erased one of Indian athletics' oldest meet records, clocking 3:37.55 seconds to better Bahadur Prasad's mark of 3:40.10, set in Chennai decades ago.
Meanwhile, Yashas P continued his dominance in the men's 400m hurdles, improving his own meet record. The Karnataka athlete clocked 49.14 seconds, eclipsing the previous mark of 49.37 seconds.
With multiple national and meet records falling in a single evening, Saturday will be remembered as one of the most remarkable days in recent Inter-State Championships history.
For Indian athletics, it was a night that showcased both the emergence of a new generation and the rewriting of records that had stood for decades.
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