Date:14/05/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/05/14/stories/2005051403812000.htm

Sport - Athletics

Rajesh sets new mark

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Rajesh Kaliraman bettered his own National boys' (under-18) high jump record by scaling 2.05 metres on the concluding day of the World Athletics Day meet at the Nehru Stadium here on Friday.

Kaliraman's 2003 record of 2.04m will, however, remain intact. For, Friday's competition happened to start as a `mixed' one, the lone girl, Tintu N.D. of Kerala, joining two boys, Kaliraman and Sarat G.S. of Kerala. Further, the record height of 2.05m was not re-measured, as required, before allowing the Haryana boy another shy at 2.07m.

It is an altogether different matter whether the federation would have taken up the record had this condition been met. Kaliraman cleared the record height on his third and final attempt.

Arvind Kumar Yadav of Uttar Pradesh added the boys 3000m title to the 1500m gold. In the girls' discus event, Priyanka Bhanot recorded a personal best of 39.75 metres, improving upon her mark of 39.45m she did for the under-16 gold in the ATE-Salwan throws meet.

The results: Boys: 400m: 1. Manjit Malik (Del) 50.81s, 2. Sandeep (Del) 51.44, 3. Mohammed Wasim (Jharkhand) 51.78; 3000m: 1. Arvind Kumar Yadav (UP) 8:53.00, 2. Dinesh (Del) 9:26.36, 3. Samod Kumar (Del) 9:30.38; high jump: 1. Rajesh Kaliraman (Har) 2.05m, 2. Sarat G. S. (Ker) 1.90; triple jump: 1. Vijay Chaudhary (UP) 14.28m, 2. Bharat Inder Singh (Har) 13.35, 3. Pradeep Tokas (Del) 11.60; discus: 1. Pradeep Kumar (Har) 51.40m, 2. Dinesh Kumar (Har) 49.95, 3. Ashwani Solanki (Del) 40.51.

Girls: 400m: 1. M. Komal (Del) 1:00.07, 2. S. R. Bindu (Ker) 1:00.34, 3. Rekha (Har) 1:08.78; discus: 1. Priyanka Bhanot (Del) 39.75m, 2. Babli (Har) 38.68, 3. Ankita Julka (Del) 38.52.