Shaili Singh wins silver, continues quest for Paris Olympics 2024 spot
Indian long jumper Shaili Singh bagged a silver medal at the JBL Jump Fest in Kosice, Slovakia, on Thursday, June 20. The JBL Jump Fest is a World Athletic Continental Tour (Bronze Level) meeting.
Shaili Singh began the competition on a poor note, mistiming her run on the very first attempt. However, she found her rhythm slowly and steadily and there was significant improvement with every subsequent attempt that followed.
As a result, she managed to achieve a mark of 6.20m or above on each of her final five jumps. The fifth attempt saw her leap 6.43m, which confirmed the medal. 20-year-old Shaili finished second among six athletes with a best attempt of 6.43m, which she recorded in the fifth round.
Plamena Mitkova of Bulgaria won the event with an excellent jump of 6.70m, setting a new meeting record as well.
On the other hand, Indian Commonwealth Games gold medalist Eldhose Paul bagged a bronze at the men's triple jump final at the same meet. He finished third with a jump of 16.45m on his fifth attempt. Cuba's Lazaro Martinez, the world silver medalist, won the event with a jump of 16.88m.
Meanwhile, national record holder Praveen Chithravel had a poor outing as he failed to cross the 16m mark. With a below-par jump of 15.92m on his final attempt, Praveen finished in the last position among six participants.
Shaili Singh still on hunt for Paris Olympics 2024 spot
Shaili Singh bagged the silver medal at the JBL Jump Fest by putting up an impressive display to finish second with a best jump of 6.43m on her fifth attempt. Unfortunately, the result did not help the 20-year-old Indian long jumper in either climbing up the world rankings or gaining a quota spot for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
However, there is still hope and an opportunity for Shaili Singh to make the cut. The majority of Indian athletes, including Shaili, Eldhose Paul, and Praveen Chithravel will be in action as they take part in the National Inter-State Athletics Championships.
The National Inter-State Athletics Championships will be held in Panchkula from June 27 to June 30, 2024, where several Indian athletes, including Shaili, will still have an opportunity as they aim to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The qualification cycle for the 2024 edition of the Games will come to an end on June 30, 2024.