Javelin throwers from Uttar Pradesh walked away with four gold medals at the Indian Open Throws event in Mumbai, hinting it has plenty of depth.
Results of the fourth edition of the Indian Open Throws meet held on March 20 and 21 at Jio Institute in Navi Mumbai hinted that Uttar Pradesh has plenty of depth in javelin throw.
The winners of the men’s javelin gold and silver, Rohit Yadav, World Championships finalist and Olympian Shivpal Singh respectively, were from Uttar Pradesh.
The U20 javelin throw gold and silver medals were also clinched by athletes from Uttar Pradesh. Dipanshu Sharma hurled the spear to a distance of 68.43m to finish first, while his team-mate Rohan Yadav was second with 66.48m.
The women’s javelin gold also went to an Uttar Pradesh athlete – India’s ace javelin thrower and Asian Games champion Annu Rani who achieved a throw of 58.82m.
Uttar Pradesh’s promising thrower Pratiksha Patel won gold in the U20 women’s group with 41.89m.
The men’s javelin event saw a keen contest for the gold medal. Rohit Yadav, who was the most consistent of all the throwers in the fray on that day, walked away with the gold medal. His first attempt of 78.87m in fact fetched him gold. While Olympian Shivpal surged ahead in his final attempt to claim silver with 77.00m. Karnataka’s Shashank Patil took home bronze with 76.66m.
Sahil Silwal, representing Reliance and one of the contenders for podium, finished fifth with a throw of 73.10m.
The promising Sachin Yadav, the winner of the gold medal at the 38th Uttarakhand National Games with a throw of 84.39m, is also from Uttar Pradesh. He skipped the Indian Open Throws meet due to an ankle niggle and should be one to watch at the next month’s track and field meet in Kerala.
After the National Games in Uttarakhand, the throwing competition in Mumbai was the second event of an exciting 2025 season.
In the coming days, rivalry among the elite athletes training in different parts of the country, including the talented bunch from Uttar Pradesh, is expected to generate more interest because all will be eyeing on winning berths for the Asian Athletics Championships in May and the World Athletics Championships in September.
The global competition has an entry standard of 85.50m for the men’s javelin throw. Athletes can also qualify through the world ranking system.
Till date ace India javelin thrower, Neeraj Chopra, has booked a berth in the World Championship. The double Olympic Games medallist and World Champion has a personal best of 89.94m set in 2022. He is expected to start his 2025 season in May at the Doha Diamond League.
India’s Asian Games silver medallist, Kishore Kumar Jena, is yet to start his season. The 2023 World Championships finalist is recovering from an ankle surgery and undergoing rehab.
More javelin entries from the country, like one witnessed in some top events in previous years, at continental and global events is expected to further boost the discipline.
