Inter State Senior Athletics: Tamil Nadu vaulters soar to joint gold in dramatic final

CHENNAI: The 64th National Inter State Senior Athletics Championships got underway in Chennai on Wednesday, and it was the pole vault pit tucked behind the goalpost that delivered the day’s drama as Tamil Nadu’s M Gowtham and G Reegan finished level and shared the gold medal.

The competition started slowly but gathered pace in the later stages. M Gowtham cleared 5.10m before successfully vaulting 5.15m at his first attempt, setting a new meet record by surpassing S Siva’s mark from Bhubaneswar in 2023. He went on to clear 5.20m, once again on his first attempt, registering both a personal best and another meet record. Thanjavur’s G Reegan responded immediately, also clearing 5.20m on his first attempt to match Gowtham with a personal best and a meet record of his own.

Gowtham later made three unsuccessful attempts at 5.25m. Reegan took up the challenge and came close in his second effort, with his body clearing the bar before his legs brushed it on the way down. In his final attempt he appeared to succeed, but after landing on the mat the bar fell, denying him the record.

“I didn’t tighten my legs fully, they were slightly open and just brushed against the bar,” Reegan told the media after the event. With both vaulters tied at 5.20m, the competition ended with the pair sharing the gold medal.

Dhana comes back strong after doping ban, bags gold

In the women’s 100m final, Dhana Lakshmi marked her return to the domestic circuit after serving a three-year doping ban, clocking 11.36 seconds to finish ahead of Abinaya Rajarajan. Abinaya had entered the meet in good form, having won the 100m gold at the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze earlier this month.

“I had already achieved 11.32 at the state meet and came here with confidence. I am satisfied with my performance today and in the upcoming events I will try for the national record,” Dhana told the media.

She admitted to being nervous on her return but added that she had prepared well. “I trained a lot over these three years. I knew I had to prove myself, so I resumed training a year after the ban. I believe that hard work has helped me win gold today.”

Elsewhere, Rajesh Ramesh clocked 46.59 seconds to top his heat in the men’s 400m semi-finals. The final is scheduled to be held on Thursday.