India’s national record holder Annu Rani qualified for the final of the women’s javelin throw final, finishing 5th in her group (B) with the best throw of 59.60m in the afternoon session on day 6 of the world athletics championships at Hayward Field Eugene, Oregon, USA on Thursday. Overall Rani qualified 8th with Japan’s Haruka Kitaguchi topping the qualification with a season-best throw of 64.32m, followed by Shiying Liu of China (63.86m) and Liveta Jasiunaite of Lithuania (63.80m). Top 12 qualify for the finals from Group A and B.
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The 29-year-old has a personal best of 63.82m, a national record, set in Jamshedpur in May earlier this year. Rani started her series with a no throw in her first attempt before landing 55.35 and with her final throw claimed the qualification berth with a throw of 59.60m. The final is slated for July 22, starting at 5:20 AM IST.
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The other Indian in the fray on Day 6 of the tournament was India’s Parul Chaudhary in the women’s 5000m heats and she finished 17th in Heat 2 with a timing of 15.54.03s.
But, Rani more than made up for Chaudhary’s disappointment as she scaled the 59/60 mark on her third throw to finish 5th in her group and eighth overall. This is all the more impressive considering the fact that after her second attempt, the Indian was 21st on the list.
Her second attempt came in at 55.37m after a foul on the first throw. But, she held on and zoomed up the order with her third throw which was enough to ensure her qualification to the finals of the event, giving the Indian contingent a chance for the medal in women’s javelin throw event.
She has a personal best of 15:36.03s set in Doha in 2019 and a season-best of 15:39.77s over this distance set in April earlier this year. Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey topped the qualification with the timing of 14:52.27s followed by Kazakistan’s Caroline Kipkirui (14:52.54s), Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay (14:52.64s).
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