Sport - Olympic Games

Surendra 26th

BEIJING: Surendra Kumar Singh finished 26th in a time of 28:13.97, his second best time, in the 10,000m event at the National Stadium on Sunday. Thirty five of the 39 starters finished the race.

Surendra, who had clocked 28:02.89 in Vigo, Spain, to qualify for the Beijing Games, was lapped by the front bunch comprising mainly Ethiopian, Kenyan and Eritrean runners. He tried in vain to keep in touch with the leading pack in the early stages and then fell back.

The 29-year-old Armyman had the distinction of bettering the National record twice this season, as he displaced Hari Chand’s 1976 Montreal Olympics mark 28:48.72. It was a creditable effort on his part that he made the Olympic standard in his last attempt in Spain.

Triple jumper Renjith Maheswary will attempt his qualification for the final on Monday.

So far, it has been a disappointing outing for the Indian athletes, with no one being able to cross the first round or a qualification stage.

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