THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Alex P Thankachan was the star of the opening day of the 61st Kerala state junior athletics championship as the St George HSS, Kothamangalam thrower produced a record-breaking performance with the discus at the Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium here on Thursday.
The 18-year-old cleared a distance of 53.82 metres in the end to win the gold in the boys' U-18 category but was bitterly disappointed that one of his throws that easily cleared 59 metres ended up being a foul one during a very heavy rainy day at the capital city.
"When he switched to throws from running four years ago, he could only register 17 metres. But he has gradually improved his throws and still has plenty of potential to be one of the finest in the country," said Raju Paul, the veteran coach of St George's HSS. "He has been clearing 53-58 metres regularly which can win him a medal at the senior nationals level," he added.
Alex, hailing from Alakode in Kannur district, took to athletics while being a student of NSS Higher Secondary School there. But on Raju's advice, he switched to throws after joining St George's as an eighth standard student. He was helped by the Vivek V K and Unni Raju, former throwers of the Kothamangalam school, to adapt to the new event.
The results are there to be seen as he easily broke the previous meet record set by Ernakulam's Muhamed Ijas in 2010 with a 46.28 metre throw. He was joined on the podium by his schoolmate Amal P B who was a distant second with a throw of 39.53 metres.
"I have a lot of areas to improve. I am already throwing with the 1.75 kg discus and clearing around the 55-metre mark. I hope to do that and get into contention for medals at national and international events as soon as possible," said Alex.