Key Points

Ayush Verma was fifth in the men’s Shot Put F5 final, his best effort of 7.23m falling 97cm short of the bronze medal distance attained by Ales Kisy (Czechia). Rongali Ravi, a seasoned campaigner, was unable to be in the mix in the dramatic men’s Shot Put F40 final, with his season’s best effort of 10.10m falling 76cm short of a podium finish.

Meanwhile, Denis Gnezdilov strode the shot put circle like a colossus, gunning down the men’s F40 world record twice in the Para World Athletics Championships at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Monday. Each of his five throws after the opening 10.66m effort was good enough for him to get the gold.

The Rustavi-born 38-year-old was in a league of his own. The 11.85m on his third attempt enabled him to break Paralympic gold medallist Miguel Monteiro’s world record, and the 11.92m on the last throw raised the bar higher. The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic gold medal winner claimed his third World Championship crown, solidifying his place in the sport’s history.

Miguel Monteiro (Portugal) and Garrah Tnaiash (Iraq), who have both held the men’s Shot Put F40 World Record earlier, sought to make the final a keen battle. With two former world champions in the fray, Garrah Tnaiash and Yannis Fischer (Germany), the final was, expectedly, of a high standard.

The Portugal star led after the first round with 10.92m, but Gnezdilov established his stranglehold in the second round with an 11.59m effort on his second visit. He did not loosen his grip or take the foot off the pedal, gaining the world record on his third attempt and, with no hint of complacency despite being assured of hold, rewriting the mark on his last visit.

There were two other Championship Records that were breached on Monday morning. Poland’s Bartosz Gorczak rewrote the meet mark in the men’s Shot Put F53 final with an 8.67m throw, while the women’s Discus Throw F44 final witnessed Mexico’s. Osiris Aneth Machado got gold with 44.36m and a championship record.

Poland sent out a second gold medalist on the third day of competition through Faustyna Kotlowska in the women’s Discus Throw F64 final. The two gold medals helped Poland vault to the top of the medal table, with four gold and four bronze, ahead of Brazil (three gold, five silver, two bronze) and China (three gold, four silver, three bronze). India is in 13th place with one gold, one silver, and one bronze.

- IANS