- August 7, 2026
World Athletics U20 Championships: Mohammed Ashfaq Breaks National U20 400m Record
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Mohammed Ashfaq bettered his own previous national record of 46.05 seconds, set earlier this season in April.
Mohammed Ashfaq clocked 45.81 seconds to finish second. (Picture Credit: AFI)
India’s Mohammed Ashfaq rewrote the U20 national record books to book his place in the men’s 400m semifinals, while his compatriot Amanat Kamboj produced a personal best effort to finish sixth in the women’s discus throw final on the second day of the World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, USA.
The 19-year-old Ashfaq clocked 45.81 seconds in Heat 5 of the first round, finishing second behind USA’s Jayden DeLeon (45.63s). His performance placed him fourth overall and secured his semifinal berth.
Ashfaq improved his own previous national record of 46.05 seconds, which he had set earlier this season in April.
However, fellow Indian Piyush Raj could not progress after finishing fifth in Heat 6 and 35th overall with a timing of 47.78 seconds.
In the women’s discus throw final, 18-year-old Kamboj registered her best-ever mark with a first-round throw of 53.24m, which earned her sixth place.
China’s Su Yixin claimed the gold medal with a throw of 61.06m, while USA’s Jaslene Massey (58.41m) and Cyprus’ Marina Hadjicosta (54.88m) secured the silver and bronze medals respectively.
In the men’s high jump qualification, Basant advanced to the final after finishing fifth in Group A and 11th overall with a best clearance of 2.14m.
His compatriot K Ambriesh, meanwhile, was eliminated after clearing only 2.05m to finish 12th in Qualification Group B and 24th overall. He was unable to clear 2.10m in any of his three attempts.
Anshu narrowly missed out on a spot in the women’s shot put final, finishing ninth in her qualification group and 14th overall with an effort of 15.24m.
Tanu Chaudhary failed to progress to the women’s 400m hurdles semifinals after placing fifth in her heat and 33rd overall with a timing of 1:00.03s.
In the men’s 400m hurdles, Amit Kumar finished eighth and last in his heat after clocking 54.01 seconds.
Meanwhile, India’s P Royshan and Dhanush Raj also failed to qualify for the men’s triple jump final, ending the qualification round in 25th and 34th place overall with efforts of 15.20m and 14.71m respectively.
With PTI Inputs
About the Author
Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience …Read More
August 07, 2026, 11:36 IST
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