In the previous World Championship at Daegu, India’s squad comprised only eight athletes. This time around, the headcount has swelled to 15. Apart from this, nothing praiseworthy has transpired in the last two years in Indian athletics.
As is the norm, Indians would race against the odds. Yet, expectations are ironically high and the highest stake is on 20-km walkers — Gurmeet Singh, Chandan Singh and KT Irfan. The cynosure would be Irfan, who finished 10th in London Games. If any, he has only improved thereafter, devoting a good chunk of his time to training abroad and participating even in all and sundry competitions.
However, even if he hopes to peak in time, he would have to better his own best (1:20:21) by a huge margin to be among the medals. Moreover, he has to compete with big names such as Pyotr Trofimov of Russia, current year’s best performer Yusuke Suzuki (1:18:28) of Japan and a bunch of Chinese led by the effervescent Jianbo Li. Irfan’s annual best, meanwhile, is 1:20:59, clocked in Taicang this March.
Yet, Irfan believes he could pull off a surprise. “I am working hard and hope it won’t go waste. The competition is tough and if I can finish under 1:19 or so it would be interesting” Irfan told TNIE before leaving for Moscow.
In men’s triple Jump, 18th-ranked Renjith Maheshwary would find the going tough, as he would be pitted against the likes of Cuba’s Pedro Pablo Picccardo (annual best-17.69m) and the USA’s Christian Taylor (annual best-17.66m). But Renjith seemed confident of reaching the final.
“Except the first and the second, the rest normally jump below 17.40m. So I think I can go all out for a slot in the finals,” averred Renjith, whose career has flat-lined since the personal best of 17.07m in 2010.
Discus thrower Vikas Gowda, currently ranked eighth in the world and has a best of 66.28m, is perhaps India’s best medal prospect. It is easier said than done as top guns like Piotr Malachowski of Poland (annual best 71.84 m), Olympic champion and three-time world winner Robert Harting (annual best-69.91mm) of Germany are in the fray, baying to settle the score between them.
In women’s 3000m steeplechase, Sudha Singh would be more than happy if she could reach the final. The Asian Games gold medallist’s best is 9:45.60, well beneath Lidiya Chepkurui (annual best 9:13.75) and Milcah Chemos (annual best 9:14.17).
But the event the athletic buffs will anxiously await is the women’s 4x 400m relay. The doping fiasco, the return of dope-accused Ashwini Akkunji, her dramatic golden run and her subsequent qualification in the Pune Asian Championship, all have helped make an unprecedented drama around the event.
However, medal hopes seem bleak. For the Indian quartet clocked only 3:32.26 in Pune, whereas the last team that qualified for the final in 2011 had timed 3:26.01. This well sums up the onerous task at the hands of India’s athletes.