Aldrin covered 8.37 m on his second attempt but the tail wind speed measured on the wind gauge was +4.1m/s, well above the legal limit of +2m/s. He cannot be denied gold but will certainly be deprived of a national record.
However, Aldrin qualified for the World Championships in Eugene, USA in July, based on a legal jump of 8.26m in his fourth attempt. The World Championships qualifying standard is 8.22 metres.
2/2 #MuraliSreeshankar and #JeswinAldrin both have qualified for the 2022 World Championships (QM- 8.22m) Fantast… https://t.co/OU29hU21Hz
—SAI Media (@Media_SAI) 1648997142000
Sreeshankar, who won the silver medal in his third attempt with a jump of 8.36m at a valid wind speed of +1.5m/s, broke his own national record of 8.26m. The Kerala jumper also qualified for the World Championships.
Sreeshankar’s jump of 8.36m is also a world-leading effort, although this is an early season.
“Jesvin Aldrin’s 8.37m performance was not legal and therefore would not count for record purposes and any qualification. But his 8.26m effort (in his fourth attempt) was legal and therefore has also qualified for the World Championships,” Radhakrishnan Nair, the head coach of Indian athletics, told PTI-Bhasha.
“Srishankar’s 8.36m would be the new national record (if ratified) as it was legal, though he did not win the gold.”
The long jump final would go down as one of the best in Indian athletics history as nine jumps were over 8 metres, although two of them were wind-assisted above the legal limits.
Another jumper from Kerala, Mohammed Anees Yahiya, already a member of the 8m club, made another wind-assisted (+2.3m/s) effort of 8.06m to win the bronze.
It was no surprise that Aldrin would win gold as he finished second among the world season leaders before Sunday with his 8.20m during last month’s Indian Grand Prix. On Sunday, he made a series of 8.01, 8.37, 8.14, 8.26, X, 8.16.
Sreeshankar made three jumps ahead of 8 meters while the remaining three attempts were wrong as his chain read 8.16, X, 8.36, X, 8.07, X.
A thrilling fight in the long jump pit stole the thunder with Aishwarya Mishra’s gold-winning effort in the women’s 400m. The Maharashtra athlete had everyone on the edge of their seats with a sensational 400m sprint in 51.18s, the fifth best time by an Indian woman.
He ran one of his races, scorching the track from the very beginning. She became the three fastest female quarter mile runners in the country. Only Hima Das (NR, 50.79) – thrice in 2018 – and Manjeet Kaur (51.05) – once in 2004 – have run faster than Aishwarya.
These two performances meant that B Shiva Kumar (Tamil Nadu) and Dutee Chand (Odisha), who claimed the title of fastest man and woman respectively, had less headlines on Sunday.
27-year-old Shiva Kumar, who clocked a personal best time of 10.37 seconds, was recognized as the winner when the photo finish equipment gave him a lead of four-thousandths of a second over Tamil Nadu teammate Elakkiyadasan.
Dutee Chand (11.49s) came back to winning ways after losing the Federation Cup and the National Inter-State Championships last year.
Ajay Kumar Saroj (Uttar Pradesh) and Lily Das (West Bengal) registered impressive victories in the men’s and women’s 1500m races.
Earlier in the day, Andhra Pradesh’s Jyothi Yaraji clocked 13.43 seconds in the top 100m hurdles heat to set a new meet record time, improving on Anuradha Biswal’s effort of 13.48 seconds in New Delhi 16 years ago.
Result (Finals):
Men: 100 m: 1. B Shiva Kumar (Tamil Nadu) 10.37 sec; 2. VK Ilakkiadasan (Tamil Nadu) 10.37; 3. Harjit Singh (Punjab) 10.43.
400m: 1. Rajesh Ramesh (Tamil Nadu) 46.45 secs; 2. Akash Kumar (Uttar Pradesh) 46.57; 3. Noah Nirmal Tom (Kerala) 46.81.
1500m: 1. Ajay Kumar Saroj (Uttar Pradesh) 3:42.36; 2. Rahul (Delhi) 3:42.40; 3. Jinson Johnson (Kerala) 3;43.48.
Long Jump: 1. Jesvin Aldrin (Tamil Nadu) 8.37 m (+4.1 m/s wind-assisted); 2. M Sreeshankar (Kerala) 8.36; 3. Mohd. Anees Yahia (Kerala) 8.06.
Javelin Throw: 1. Rohit Yadav (Uttar Pradesh) 81.83 m; 2. P Manu (Karnataka) 79.17; 3. Sahil Silwal (Haryana) 73.35.
Decathlon: 1. Saurabh Rathi (Uttar Pradesh) 6643 Marks; 2. Buta Singh (Haryana) 6619; 3. Mohit (Haryana) 6613.
Women: 100m: 1. Dutee Chand (Odisha) 11.49; 2. MV District (Kerala) 11.63; 3. NS Simi (Karnataka) 11.71.
400m: 1. Aishwarya Kailash Mishra (Maharashtra) 51.18 sec (new meet record. Old: 51.28, Nirmala Sheoran, Patiala, 2017); 2. MR Poovamma (Karnataka) 52.70; 3. Dandi Jyothika Shree (Andhra Pradesh) 53.90.
1500m: 1. Lily Das (West Bengal) 4:15.46; 2, Ankita Dhyani (Uttarakhand) 4:16.07; 3. Chanda (Delhi) 4:16.41.
Shot Put: 1. Abha Khatua (Maharashtra) 16.75m; 2. Manpreet Kaur (Punjab) 16.21; 3. Kachnar Choudhary (Rajasthan) 14.95.