KATHMANDU, Dec 6: Sri Lanka thwarted India’s dominance on day three as it bagged four gold medals in athletics of the 13th South Asian Games (SAG) on the day when Nepal failed to add a single medal after a dismal overall performance on Thursday.
At the Dasharath Stadium in Tripureshwar, Sri Lanka started the day with a gold and a silver. Aruna Dharshana of Sri Lanka completed the men’s 400 meters distance in 46.69 seconds to win the gold, while his compatriot Lakmal Priyanth covered the distance in 46.79 seconds.
Likewise, India’s Jeevan Karekopp won the bronze with the timing of 47.42 seconds. Nepal’s Siman Pandey and Nir Pratap Maharjan did not qualify for the finals.
Sri Lanka won the women’s 400 meters category as well, but India and Pakistan managed to win the silver and the bronze respectively.
Sri Lanka’s Dilshi Maheesha finished first with the timing of 53.40 seconds, while India’s Priya Habbathan covered the dsitance in 54.31 seconds. Also, Pakistan’s Sahib E Esra took 54.58 seconds to win the bronze. Again, Nepal’s Sangita Meche and Aruna Rijal did not qualify for the finals.
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India reigned supreme in the men’s triple jump as the gold medalist also set a new SAG record and the top two places being consumed by the SAG heavyweight.
India’s Karthik Unnikri cleared the rope with a distance of 16.47 meters to win the gold and set a new national record breaking the previous one set by India’s Renjit Maheswary (16.45m) in 2016. Unnikri’s compatriot Mohammed Salahu won the bronze with the jump of 15.85 meters. Likewise, Sri Lanka’s Safreen Ahmed jumped 16.16 meters to get the bronze.
Nepal’s Dilli Khatri and Bhuvan Mahato finished sixth and seven with the distances of 14.01 and 13.53 meters respectively.
Likewise, Sri Lanka won its third gold medal as Sri Lanka’s Hashini Prabodh jumped as far as 13.21 meters to win the gold in women’s long jump. The second place was consisted by Sri Lanka as well as Vidusha Lakshan cleared the distance by 13.14 meters.
India’s Bhairabi Roy claimed the bronze medal with a distance of 12.77 meters, while Nepal’s Shila Chaudhary, 11.06 meters, finished sixth.
Pakistan won its maiden gold medal in men’s 110 meters hurdles as Muhammed Naeem completed the distance in 14.30 seconds, with India’s Surendhar Jayak covered 14.37 seconds.
Likewise, Sri Lanka’s Roshan Dhamaka won the bronze with the timing of 14.42, while Nepal’s Jeevan Chaudhary and Chandra Dev Joshi timed 15.60 and 16.39 seconds to finish sixth and eighth respectively.
Similarly, in women’s 100 meters hurdles, Sri Lanka’s Lakshika Sugand completed the distance 13.68 seconds, while India’s Aparna Roy covered in 14.13 seconds. Likewise, Sri Lanka’s Ireshani Sachip took 14.18 seconds to win the bronze.
Nepal’s Pramila Tharu finished last with the timing of 16.38 seconds.
