High-jumper Sarvesh Anil Kushare wins gold at Malaysia Open; inches closer to Paris Olympics qualification
Indian high-jumper Sarvesh Anil Kushare put up a commendable performance to strengthen his claim for a quota at the Paris Olympics. With a jump of 2.23m, he clinched a gold medal at the Malaysia Open Championships on Sunday, June 15.
Kushare began the competition with a jump of 2.05m and produced a best effort of 2.23m. He also attempted a jump of 2.26m but failed on all three chances.
Nevertheless, he prevailed by a big margin over second-placed Mahfuzur Rahman (2.10m) of Bangladesh.
Kushare is currently ranked 36th on the Race to Paris rankings and needs a few more impressive performances to put his name among the top 32 athletes for qualification. Furthermore, according to the qualification standards for high jump, he can guarantee his qualification with a 2.33m jump.
He will next be seen participating in the 63rd edition of the National Inter State Senior Athletics Championships at Panchkula, Haryana from June 27 to 30.
On the other hand, Praveen Chithravel secured a bronze medal in the men's triple jump event at Meeting Nikaïa in Nice, France. He registered a best effort of 16.37m on his second attempt. He is yet to meet the Paris Olympics standard of 17.22m.
Eldhose Paul also participated in the event, settling for fourth place with a jump of 16.27m.
Performances of Sarvesh Anil Kushare ahead of Paris Olympics
In April 2024, Kushare won the high jump title at the Mt. SAC Relays 2024 athletics meet held at the Hilmer Lodge Stadium in Walnut, California. He recorded a best jump of 2.23m while failing to clear the 2.28m mark in all three attempts.
The 28-year-old also won the high jump title at Bryan Clay Invitational 2024 held at the Azusa Pacific University in Southern California in April. He finished with the best effort of 2.19m.
Kushare recorded his personal best of 2.27m at the National Games in Gujarat in 2022.
It will be interesting to see if Sarvesh Kushare can earn a quota in the Paris Olympics. However, his performances have been nothing short of exemplary in 2024 and he will look to build on the momentum.