Asian Games 2023 Athletics: Santhosh Kumar, Yashas, Vithya Ramraj through to 400m hurdles finals

Mohammad Afsal and Krishan Kumar qualified for finals in men's 800m.

Indian athletes had a laudable performance in the morning session on day 4 of the athletics action at the Asian Games 2023. With a stunning effort, Vithya Ramraj equalled a 39-year-old national record set by PT Usha in women's 400m hurdles. Tejaswin Shankar continued to remain in medal contention in decathlon. Krishan Kumar and Muhammed Afsal made the 800m finals, with the latter even cinching the top spot in his qualification heat.

In the men's 400m hurdles, both Santhosh Kumar and Yahas Palaksha also made the finals while Vithya set a new personal best with a timing of 55.42 en route to matching the legendary PT Usha's national record.

The action kicked off with Tejaswin Shankar competing in men's decathlon 100m where he made an impressive start by amassing 834 points as he secured the fourth position with a personal best and season best time of 11.12 seconds.

He ascended to the top of the decathlon leaderboard after he seized the lead with a cumulative score of 1737 points which was driven by a remarkable 7.37m performance in the long jump. Though he delivered a season-best throw of 13.39m in shot put which happens to be one of his weaker events, Tejaswin could only secure the fifth position that lowered him to the fifth spot in the overall standings.

Shortly after, Sarvesh Anil Kushare and Jesse Sandesh took part in the men's high jump qualifying A & B rounds but faced challenges in clearing the 2.15m height, while the reigning champion, Mutaz Barshim, who holds both the Asian Record and Asian Games record was yet to join the competition at this time.

Other Indians in the fray, Krishan Kumar and Muhammed Afsal were seen in action in the men's 800m heats. They secured their spots in the 800m final as Krishan Kumar progressed with a time of 1:49.45 while Mohammed Afsal clocked 1:46.79 to clinch the top position in the second heat and secure direct qualification for the final.

The excitement continued with Santhosh Kumar and Yashas Palaksha in the men's 400m hurdles who qualified for the finals with an finish time of 49.28 seconds and 49.61 seconds respectively. The highlight of the morning session was Vithya Ramraj in the women's 400m hurdles who claimed the top spot in her heat with a stunning personal best time of 55.42 seconds surpassing her previous mark of 55.43.

In a development of even greater significance, Vithya has achieved a historic milestone by equaling PT Usha's long-standing national record in the 400m hurdles, a record that has endured since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Meanwhile, Sinchal Kaveram concluded her run in the competition by finishing in the last position in heat 2.