Date:13/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/13/stories/2008071360421900.htm

Sport - Athletics

Relay team fails to qualify

NEW DELHI: India’s campaign in the World junior athletics championships at Bydgoszcz, Poland, ended on a dismal note on Saturday as its women’s 4x400m relay team finished seventh in the heats and failed to qualify for the final.

The quartet of Jauna Murmu, S.R. Bindu, Tintu Luka and M.R. Povamma, credited with a season best of 3:42.47, timed 3:44.13. The US won the heat in a world junior leading time of 3:29.54.

Ukraine (3:37.12), Germany (3:37.20) and Belarus (3:37.45) took the first three positions in the other heat. France (3:37.54) and Canada (3:37.84), in either heat, qualified as the “fastest losers”.

On Friday, high jumper Lakshmanan Yogaraj failed to clear the opening height of 2.00 metres and ended up with a ‘no mark’. All the qualifiers cleared 2.14 metres.