CWG 2026: Animesh Kujur reaches 200m semifinals, Toor and Gill enter shot put final
Glasgow, July 29
Indian athletes enjoyed a productive outing in track and field at the Commonwealth Games 2026 on Tuesday, with national record holder Animesh Kujur storming into the men's 200m semifinals, while shot putters Tajinderpal Singh Toor and Samardeep Singh Gill booked their places in the final, according to ESPN.
Kujur produced an impressive performance in Heat 4 of the men's 200m, clocking a season's best time of 20.46 seconds to win his race. With only the 16 fastest athletes across 10 heats progressing to the semifinals, the Indian sprinter had to wait for the remaining heats to conclude before his qualification was confirmed.
After all the heats were completed, Kujur advanced to the semifinals in seventh place overall, keeping India's hopes alive in the sprint event. The national record holder, whose personal best stands at 20.32 seconds, will now look to build on his strong form in the semifinals, according to ESPN.
In the men's shot put qualification, both Tajinderpal Singh Toor and Samardeep Singh Gill progressed comfortably to the final.
Toor, competing in Group A, opened with a throw of 19.93m before improving to 20.14m on his second attempt, surpassing the automatic qualification mark of 20m. His effort earned him second place overall in the qualifying round.
Gill, meanwhile, registered throws of 19.95m and 19.75m to finish fifth overall, which was enough to secure his place in the final.
New Zealand's Nick Walsh topped the qualification standings with a best throw of 21.03m and will enter the final as the favourite for the gold medal.
With Kujur advancing in the sprints and both Indian shot putters reaching the final, India continued its encouraging run in athletics at the Commonwealth Games.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Good progress, but we need to be realistic. Our shot putters are throwing around 20m while New Zealand's Nick Walsh is at 21m+. That's a big gap. Let's hope they can close it in the final. 🏃♂️
These athletes are putting in so much hard work without the facilities our cricket team gets – yet still delivering results. Two in shot put final and a sprinter in semis? Bloody brilliant! Respect to all of them.
Great to see Indian athletics improving. The shot put final should be interesting – Toor and Gill both looking competitive. Kujur in the 200m is a nice surprise too. Best of luck from a sports fan in Australia! 👍
Why is there so little coverage of these events on Indian news channels? They'd rather show 20 minutes of Bollywood gossip than 2 minutes of our athletes competing at the Commonwealth Games. These are the real heroes. 📺
Solid performance from the Indian contingent. Toor's 20.14m is decent but he'll need to step it up against Walsh. Kujur's season best shows he's peaking at the right time. Let's see if they can convert this into medals! 🏅
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