NAGOYA: HOW destiny changed for two Indian women long jumpers in the last round. Until round five in the women's final on Sunday, Ancy Sojan led the roost with a 6.53m leap, with compatriot Shaili Singh sitting at third with a mark of 6.42m. Then, the Chinese duo surged. Huang Yingying recorded 6.55m, just two centimetres better and Tan Mengyi leapt to 6.46m on her last attempt to win bronze in the Asian Games here.
Gold and bronze just changed to silver and nothing.
But still, one silver is better than nothing. Two centimetres may not mean anything for ordinary persons’ lives, but in long jump it can decide the fate of the jumpers.
“Today was not my day,” Ancy Sojan kept repeating the entire time while in the mixed zone on Sunday. As the evening at the Paloma Mizuho Sports Park settled in, light drizzle continued until late at night. Not an ideal condition for athletics but like most outdoor sports, there is any rain delay or halt.
Indian athletes struggled in the wet weather. It was laborious during training affecting Ancy’s movements. “I was tired but did not show,” she said because of the conditions.
For India, one side of the stadium was of more interest. Of course, the track also assumed importance with a handful of athletes in fray for medal. There was a sprinkling of Sunday crowd in the stands – the best attendance so far here. Two Indian women were jumping – Ancy and Shaili. The two had good jumps under trying conditions for jumpers on a wet track.
Ancy, like always, was stunningly noticeable with her multiple rainbow coloured hair clips, shining blushers with sprinklers and yellow eyeliner. She loves to wear make-up just like the great Flo-Jo (Florence Griffith Joyner). She wants to stand out. She considers herself as a performer and dresses up like one too. Constant flow of music created the rhythm, just like a theatre.
Ancy thrives on any stage. Despite drizzle and wet tracks, her jumps were good but not up to her standard. She has had monstrous jumps this season including the national record of 6.88m in Bhubaneswar. It has been a long season. She competed in 10 competitions and is slowly feeling tired. Her first attempt was a 6.49m mark. That set the tempo for better jumps. However, it took her four jumps to touch 6.53m. Shaili was third. China’s Yingying too caught up with her with a 6.49m effort in the fifth. Both were tied but Ancy was leading on countback with better jumps. Compared to her, the Chinese started very slowly, with a 6.14m jump. Yet, by the time she stood there waiting for her last jump, there were indications of improvement. Even Ancy was closely following her.
Yingyang leapt and landed on the wet pit and rolled. The jump seemed the best of the evening and when measured it turned out to be – 6.55m. Ancy had to do better but it was not to be. She was pushed to second and Shaili out of contention. She left the field crying.
The silver was not what she had come here for. She had already won it in the 2022 Hangzhou Games which took place in 2023.. “Actually, a little heartbreak,” she said. For someone who has been battling Polycystic Ovarian Disease (PCOD), this is a big gift for those sacrifices to keep fit. She has to give up eating sugar and her favourite biryani as carbohydrates are a big no. She battled every bit of temptation to stay fit. A gold would have been a fitting end to the season.
This is nothing new for Ancy. She had had a heartbreak during the Asian Championships in 2023 when she was pushed out of the medal bracket. “It happened at the 2023 Asian Championship in Thailand where I was in first position then second, third and I realized finally I finished fourth.”
She is happy for the medal, but for a different reason. “It’s my second medal,” she said. “I was praying to God but then, I was content with silver. I will come back strong.”
Another jumper – this time horizontal – won silver. Sarvesh Kushare was tied with Chinese Taipei’s Fu Chao-hsuan but lost out on countback because Fu cleared 2.25m in his first attempt. The height is far below Sarvesh’s national record of 2.31m.
“I am not satisfied with silver but what can I do? At least I have a medal,” he said. “To those who have missed a medal and even those who have won I would just say let’s not lose hope we will get more opportunities going forward in the future.”
Later, Parul Chaudhary broke the national record to win bronze in women's steeplechase final. Running with the leading pack of Yavi Winfred and Tanui Norah, Parul saw openings in the final few laps but by the time she tried to capitalise, Winfred ran away, and created big gap from first to second. She is slowly improving her time but this record of 9:07.82s would stand out. Considering her last record was 9:12.84s, this should be considered gold standard.