World Athletics U20 Championships: Basant Meghwal wins silver in Men's High Jump event
Eugene, August 9
India's Basant Kumar Meghwal clinched the silver medal in the men's high jump at the World Athletics U20 Championships after clearing a personal best of 2.21m in Oregon.
The 19-year-old produced a composed performance, clearing 2.06m, 2.12m, 2.17m and finally 2.21m to secure his place on the podium.
Meghwal was among three athletes who cleared 2.21m, but the Indian secured the silver medal on countback. Algeria's Younes Ayachi won the gold, while Great Britain's Otis Poole claimed the bronze.
All three medallists failed to clear 2.24m in their three attempts. Ayachi had cleared 2.21m in his first attempt, while Meghwal managed it on his second and Poole on his third.
Meghwal's silver is India's second medal at the championships, following Ashish Yadav's silver in the javelin throw.
His performance marked a significant milestone as he produced a new personal best on the international stage and finished among the world's leading young high jumpers.
Earlier, India's Ashish Yadav won the silver medal in the men's javelin throw at the World Athletics U20 Championships here, becoming only the second Indian after Neeraj Chopra to finish on the podium in the event at the global junior championships.
According to Olympics.com, the 19-year-old produced a best throw of 74.09m to finish behind South Africa's Jan-Hendrik Heymans, who clinched the gold with a world U20-leading effort of 80.50m.
Dominica's Addison James won the bronze medal with 73.89m. Ashish's achievement came a decade after Chopra became the first Indian to win a javelin medal at the World U20 Championships when he claimed gold at Bydgoszcz in 2016 with a world U20 record of 86.48m.
Ashish began the final with a throw of 69.96m and fouled his second attempt before producing his best effort of 74.09m on the third. He followed it with throws of 72.31m, 70.62m and 67.98m to secure the silver.
Heymans established an early lead with 76.92m on his opening attempt and improved to 79.42m on his fifth throw before sealing the title with an 80.50m effort in his final attempt.
India had two competitors in the javelin final, with T. Dharanidharan finishing sixth with a best throw of 72.35m.
— ANI
Reader Comments
This is so inspiring! These young athletes are working so hard with limited resources compared to their international counterparts. Hats off to Basant for his personal best on such a big stage. The sports ministry needs to invest more in grassroots athletics – imagine what they could achieve with better facilities!
Brilliant performance by both athletes! But let's be honest – we've been celebrating junior medals for years. The real test is transitioning these talents to senior level. We need proper training, nutrition, and international exposure for these kids. Otherwise, they'll fade away like many before them. Let's hope the federation has a proper plan for Basant and Ashish.
Amazing news to wake up to! 🎉 Basant's composure under pressure, especially on the countback, shows real maturity. And Ashish's silver in javelin – we're producing world-class throwers now. Neeraj's influence is clearly visible. More power to these young champs!
Wonderful achievement! But I wish our media gave as much attention to these junior athletes as they do to cricketers. These kids are our future Olympic medal hopes. Shoutout to Basant and Ashish for making India proud on the world stage. Jai Hind! 🇮🇳
Great to see these results coming through. But let's not get carried away – 2.21m was good enough for silver here, but at senior level the bar is much higher. We need a systematic approach to develop these talents. Still, very proud of both our medal winners today. Well
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