Top five Performers in Asian Athletics Championships 2023

India bagged the third spot in the points table by securing 27 medals.

The Asian Athletics Championships 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand witnessed a highly successful campaign by the Indian contingent with an impressive haul of 27 medals including six golds. India’s athletes also earned 12 silver and 9 bronze medals and secured a commendable third-place finish in the Asian Athletics Championships 2023 just behind powerhouses Japan and China. This achievement equaled their previous record set in the 2017 edition held in India.

While Japan dominated the medal table with a remarkable 37 medals, China secured the second position by edging past India due to a higher count of eight gold medals.

Here are the top five standout performers from the event:

Jyothi Yarraji

The 23-year-old, Jyothi Yarraji made history for India by securing the first gold medal of the competition in the 100m hurdles. Despite the challenging conditions on a rain-drenched track at the Supachalasai Stadium she clocked a remarkable time of 13.09 seconds and triumphed over the formidable competition leaving behind Japanese runners Terada Asuka (13.13s) and Aoki Masumi (13.26s).

After securing the historic gold medal in the 100m hurdles, she added another accolade to her collection with a silver in the 200m event. She achieved a personal best time of 23.13 seconds in the final. Although she finished behind Veronica Shanti Pereira of Singapore, who clocked an impressive 22.70 seconds, Yarraji’s remarkable improvement from her previous best of 23.29 seconds in the semifinals highlighted her consistency.

Parul Chaudhary

This championship marks her first-ever gold medal in the Asian championships owing to her previous podium finishes which is a bronze in the 5000m race in 2019. In the women’s 3000m steeplechase, Chaudhary claimed victory with an impressive time of 9:38.76, surpassing Xu Shuangshuang of the Republic of China (9:44.54) and Reimi Yoshimura of Japan (9:48.48) to secure the top spot on the podium in Bangkok.

After claiming gold in the 3000m steeplechase, Chaudhary added a silver medal to her collection in the 5000m event. Clocking a time of 15.52.35, she finished second narrowly behind Yuma Yamamoto of Japan who recorded a time of 15:51.16.

Sreeshankar Murali

Sreeshankar Murali secured the silver medal in the men’s long jump event at the Asian Athletics Championships 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand. With a final jump of 8.37m, he came close to his personal best achieved in Bhubaneswar last month falling just 0.4m short. Unfortunately, he was unable to surpass the remarkable 8.40m jump by Yu Tang-Lin from Chinese Taipei who clinched the gold medal.

Nevertheless, Sreeshankar’s performance not only earned him the silver but also qualified him for the Paris Olympics 2024 surpassing the men’s long jump entry standard of 8.27m. While missing out on the gold, Sreeshankar’s achievement solidifies his position as a promising athlete for an Olympic medal.

Abha Khatua

Abha Khatua, a relatively unknown athlete astounded spectators with her exceptional performance in the shot put event. Surprising many, the 28-year-old shot putter not only finished second but also equaled the national record. Khatua showcased a tremendous improvement by surpassing her previous personal best by nearly a meter, an impressive 93 centimeters.

With her fourth throw, she propelled the 4kg iron ball to a remarkable distance of 18.06m and secured the second position. Song Jiayuan from China claimed the top spot with a throw of 18.88m. This unexpected achievement by Khatua highlights her immense potential and places her among the noteworthy athletes in the field of shot put.

Abdulla Aboobacker

Abdulla Aboobacker, the talented 27-year-old triple jumper clinched the gold medal at the Asian Athletics Championships. His impressive jump of 16.92m secured the top spot, while Japan’s Hikaru Ikehata took home the silver with a jump of 16.73m. Aboobacker has been consistently making his mark in the field, notably winning a silver medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games with a remarkable jump of 17.02m.

This year has been particularly successful for him, winning gold at the 2023 Federation Cup Athletics Championships with a 16.76m jump and another gold at the Mikio Oda Memorial Athletics meet in Japan with a jump of 16.31m. Although his personal best stands at 17.19m, Aboobacker’s notable performances have solidified his position as one of India’s finest triple jumpers. With his recent silver medal at the National Inter-State Athletics Championships, where he achieved a distance of 16.88m, Aboobacker continues to excel in the field and looks forward to showcasing his skills at the upcoming Asian Games.

Medallists at Asian Athletics Championships 2023

Medal	Athlete	Event	Performance
Gold	Jyothi Yarraji	100m hurdles	13.08s
Gold	Parul Chaudhary	3000m steeplechase	9:38.76
Gold	Tajinderpal Singh Toor	Shot put	20.23m
Gold	Abdulla Aboobacker	Triple jump	16.92m
Gold	Ajay Kumar Saroj	1500m	3:41.51
Gold	Mixed Relay Team	4x400m	3:14.70
Silver	Jyothi Yarraji	200m	23.13s
Silver	Chanda	800m	2:01.58
Silver	Parul Chaudhary	5000m	15:52.35
Silver	Priyanka Goswami	20km racewalk	1:34:24
Silver	Shaili Singh	Long jump	6.54m
Silver	Abha Khatua	Shot put	18.06m
Silver	Swapna Barman	Heptathlon	5840 points
Silver	DP Manu	Javelin	81.01m
Silver	M. Sreeshankar	Long jump	8.37m
Silver	Sarvesh Anil Kushare	High jump	2.26m
Silver	Men’s Relay Team	4x400m	3:01.80
Silver	Krishan Kumar	800m	1:45.88
Bronze	Manpreet Kaur	Shot put	17.00m
Bronze	Women’s Relay Team	4x400m	3:33.73
Bronze	Ankita	5000m	16:03.33
Bronze	Aishwarya Mishra	400m	53.07s
Bronze	Tejaswin Shankar	Decathlon	7527 points
Bronze	Santhosh Kumar	400m hurdles	49.09s
Bronze	Vikash Singh	20km racewalk	1:29.32
Bronze	Abhishek Pal	10000m	29:33.26
Bronze	Gulveer Singh	5000m	13:48.33