AFI clears Jeswin to compete in Worlds

NEW DELHI: Long jumper Jeswin Aldrin was on Sunday cleared by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) to take part in the upcoming World Championships despite failing to touch the stipulated mark in the two trials held recently. Jeswin was called for trials on July 4 and 8, and asked to jump close to the 8.10m mark to compete in the July 15-24 World Championships in Eugene, the USA. But, he could only clear 7.99m and 7.93m in the two trials that were held in Thiruvananthapuram and Patiala. The AFI, however, decided to allow Jeswin to compete in the showpiece. Jeswin had breached the World Championships qualification mark of 8.22m during the Federation Cup in April, but was not named in the initial India team since the AFI felt that his performances dropped consistently in recent months.