Excelsior Sports Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 20: The 22nd J&K UT Athletics Championship 2024 kicked off today at the Synthetic Athletics Track at Jammu University. Organized by the J&K Amateur Athletics Association under the auspices of the Athletics Federation of India, the championship is held in collaboration with Jammu University and the Department of Youth Services and Sports, and sponsored by the J&K Sports Council.
The opening ceremony was marked by the presence of prominent sports personalities, including Prof. (Dr.) Ashutosh Sharma, President of the J&K Olympic Association and Patron-in-Chief of the J&K Amateur Athletics Association. Prof. Sharma expressed his admiration for the well-organized event and the record number of over 1,400 athletes from all 20 districts of the Union Territory participating in the competition. He also applauded the organizers for implementing modern technologies such as the Electronic Photo Finish System and Electronic Distance Measurement (EDM) devices for precise timing and measurement.
The results of the day 1 were Boys Under-20 (5000M Run): 1st; Vishav Singh Bhau (Jammu) – 18:14:45, 2nd: Hashim Riyaz (Ganderbal) – 18:33:52 and 3rd: Vishal Kumar (Jammu) – 18:49:94. Open Men (5000M Run): 1st Ritik Sharma (Kathua) – 16:25:77. 2nd: Gulbadan Himmatyar (Ganderbal) – 16:32:65 and 3rd: Brij Bhushan (Kathua) – 16:33:68.
Open Men (800M Run): 1st: Sourab Choudhary (Jammu) – 2:02.30. 2nd: Barkat Ali Wani (Srinagar) – 2:02.64 and 3rd: Balvinder Singh (Jammu) – 2:02.89. Boys Under-20 (800M Run): 1st: Mukendan Motan (Jammu) – 2:13.15. 2nd: Ankush Kumar (Kathua) – 2:13.43 and 3rd: Anshul Sharma (Udhampur) – 2:13.56. Girls Under-20 (5000M Run): 1st: Anjali Rajput (Reasi) – 3:02.66. 2nd: Sapna Devi (Udhampur) – 3:37.24. Boys Under-16 (800M Run): 1st: Aryan (Reasi) – 2:18.11, 2nd: Anshman (Jammu) – 2:18.89 and 3rd: Shah Ali Mir (Jammu) – 2:21.49.
Boys Under-14 (600M Run):1st: Zakir Manzoor (Baramulla) – 1:38.80. 2nd: Mohd. Freed (Rajouri) – 1:41.43. 3rd: Rahul Manhas (Reasi) – 1:43.94. Girls Under-14 (600M Run):-1st: Abida Shamser (Jammu) – 2:07.15. 2nd: Samya Shaheen (Ramban) – 2:07.98. 3rd: Radhika Gupta (Kishtwar) – 2:08.01. Boy’s Under-20 (6KG Shot Put): 1st: Sulakshaya Singh (Jammu) – 11.80M. 2nd: Basit Bashir (Baramulla) – 10.03M. 3rd: Arun Singh Bandral (Jammu) – 9.82M.
Open Men (7.26KG Shot Put): 1st: Manpreet Singh (Jammu) – 12.40M. 2nd: Mohd. Saleem (Jammu) – 10.82M. 3rd: Abhishek Padha (Jammu) – 10.20M. Girls Under-14 (2KG Shot Put): 1st: Urvashi Saini (Samba) – 5.81M. 2nd: Aradhya Rajput (Jammu) – 4.50M. 3rd: Radhika Gupta (Kishtwar) – 4.28M.
Girls Under-20 (400M Run): 1st: Sakshi Thakur (Reasi) – 1:08.57. Girls Under-18 (400M Run): 1st: Anshika Sharma (Udhampur) – 1:18.76- Girls Under-18 (3KG Shot Put): 1st: Himani Manhas (Doda) – 7.70M. Girls Under-16 (300M Run): 1st: Muktika Sambyal (Jammu) – 51.19. Open Women (4KG Shot Put): 1st: Samreen Kour (Jammu) – 10.50M. As the Championship progresses, more thrilling competitions are expected, with young athletes showcasing their talents and striving for excellence. The event is set to conclude tomorrow, with more results and honours to be announced.