India made a strong start to Day 8 of the Asian Games on Saturday, September 26, securing silver medals in both the men’s marathon and women’s 50m rifle 3P team events.
The men’s marathon final saw India claim a silver medal after the athlete produced a personal-best performance. The achievement ended a 44-year wait for India to win a marathon medal at the Asian Games, with the country’s previous podium finish in the event coming at the 1982 edition.
India added another silver later in the women’s 50m rifle three-positions team event. The Indian trio of Ashi Chouksey, Tilottama Sen and Vidarsa Vinod combined to finish second and secure another medal for the country.
India’s Sawan Barwal delivered a memorable performance in the men’s marathon, securing the silver medal after completing the 42.195-kilometre race in 2 hours, 11 minutes and 37 seconds. Japan’s Ichitaka Yamashita claimed the gold after clocking 2:10:49, finishing 48 seconds ahead of Barwal. China’s Peiyu Feng completed the podium with a time of 2:12:13.
Barwal’s achievement made him only the fourth Indian athlete to win a marathon medal at the Asian Games. Speaking after the race, the 28-year-old said that winning a medal was his primary target rather than focusing on his personal best. He also revealed that his performance resulted in a national record.
Barwal said his strategy was to remain with the leading pack until around the 39-40 kilometre mark before making his final push.
India Claims Silver In 50m Rifle 3 Positions
India also secured a silver medal in the women’s 50m rifle three-positions team event. The trio of Tilottama Sen, Vidarsa Vinod and Ashi Chouksey accumulated 1,763 points to finish second.
China took the gold with 1,773 points, while Kazakhstan finished third to claim the bronze medal. Tilottama and Vidarsa also progressed to the individual final.
In the individual qualification round, Ashi Chouksey and Tilottama Sen finished among the top three. Ashi recorded 395.25 points, while Tilottama scored 395.23. Vidarsa finished sixth with 588 points.
Tilottama, ranked 107th in the world, went on to finish third in the individual competition after scoring 590 points across the kneeling, prone and standing positions. Ashi finished with 585 points.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: abplive.com
