Ancy Sojan of Kerala has set a new National record in the women’s long jump, achieving a distance of 6.88m at the National Inter State Senior Athletics Championships. This performance, recorded on Saturday, June 27, surpasses the previous record of 6.83m held by Anju Bobby George, which had stood for 22 years since the 2004 Athens Olympics.
Sojan’s record-breaking jump occurred on her fifth attempt at the Kalinga Stadium. She began the competition with a jump of 6.73m, which qualified her for the Asian Games. Her consistency throughout the event culminated in the new national mark.
Following the announcement of her record, Sojan expressed her hope that Anju Bobby George would be proud of her achievement. She also stated her ambition to replicate her performance to secure a gold medal at the Asian Games and to qualify for the World Championships. Sojan, an Asian Games silver medallist, had previously achieved a jump of 6.75m at the Federation meet in Ranchi last month.
Other National Records and Key Performances
In other events at the championships, Sarvesh Kushare improved upon Tejaswin Shankar’s eight-year-old National mark in the high jump, logging 2.31m. Kushare’s performance surpassed Shankar’s previous record of 2.29m. He first met the Asian Games qualification mark before successfully clearing 2.31m on his third attempt, becoming the first Indian to exceed 2.30m. Kushare noted that his body felt in sync during the event, enabling his improved performance after not reaching 2.30m in Ranchi.
Yoonus Shah also broke a 31-year-old record in the men’s 1500m, clocking 3:37.55. This time broke Bahadur Prasad’s previous record of 3:40.10 set in 1995.
In the men’s 400m hurdles, Yashas secured first place with a time of 49.14, narrowly beating Santhosh Kumar in a photo-finish. Yashas’s time also marked a new National Meet Record, improving on his own record of 49.37 from 2023.
Ancy Sojan’s Career Trajectory
Ancy Sojan, born on March 1, 2001, in Thrissur, Kerala, represents the Indian Navy as a Chief Petty Officer. She has emerged as a prominent figure in women’s long jump, demonstrating consistent performance. Sojan earned a silver medal at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou. She also secured a silver medal at the Asian Athletics Championships and a bronze medal at the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships.
Her recent record-breaking leap of 6.88m is noted as the eighth-best performance in Asian history for the event. This achievement makes her only the second Asian woman in the last two decades to surpass the 6.85m mark. Sojan’s rise in the sport is seen as a significant development for Indian women’s long jump, continuing the legacy established by Anju Bobby George.
The National Inter State Senior Athletics Championships also saw other notable results. In the men’s 100m, Animesh Kujur from Odisha finished first with 10.28s. For the women’s 100m, Sudeshna Shivankar of Maharashtra claimed victory with 11.54s. Karanveer Singh from Punjab won the men’s shot put with a throw of 20.49m, while Annu Rani of Uttar Pradesh secured first in women’s javelin with 56.74m. In the women’s 400m hurdles, R. Vithya Ramraj of Tamil Nadu finished with 56.07s. The heptathlon saw Anamika K.A. from Kerala leading.
The event took place on Saturday, June 27.
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Source: thehindu.com
