Odisha sprinters Dondapati Mrutyam Jayaram and Mahendra Santa helped India win the bronze medal in mens 4x100m relay event of the 21st Asian Junior (U-20) Athletics Championships, which concluded at the Dubai Police Stadium in Dubai, UAE on 27 April 2024.
The Indian relay team, featuring Jayaram, Santa, Hima Teja Vallipi (Andhra Pradesh) and S Karthikeyan (Tamil Nadu) claimed the bronze with a national record of 40.01 seconds. It may be noted that both Jayaram and Santa are cadets of Bhubaneswar-based Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High Performance Centre.
Known as one of the best young sprinters of India, Jayaram also participated in the mens 200m event in which he finished sixth in the final with a time of 21.54 seconds. But he performed very well in the heats and the semifinals, clocking personal bests of 21.45 and 21.42 respectively.
As many as 60 athletes, including four from Odisha were selected by Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for the Asian Junior Championship, which will also serve as a qualifying event for the August 27 to 31 World U20 Athletics Championship to be held in Lima, Peru.
Other two Odisha athletes were Bapi Hansda (400m, 4x400m relay) and Sabita Toppo (100m hurdles, 4x100m relay). But Hansda unfortunately missed the championship due to visa issues. Sabita finished seventh in womens 100m hurdles with a time of 14.49 seconds. She qualified for the final after securing fourth position in her heats, clocking 14.10.
India bagged a total of 29 medals, including seven gold, which was better than the 19 medals (six gold, seven silver, six bronze) won at the previous edition held in Yecheon, South Korea in 2023.
The Indian squad also won 11 silver and equal number of bronze medals to finish second in the medal standing behind China. This is for the first time since 1996 Indian contingent took the second spot in medal standing at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships.
China regained the top position in the medals table with a total of 27 medals (15 gold, 9 silver, and 3 bronze medals, while Japan finished second with 21 medals (8 gold, 5 silver, 8 bronze). Hong Kong will be hosting the next edition of the Asian Junior Championships in 2026.
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PHOTO: Indian mens 4x100m relay team, featuring (L-R) S Karthikeyan, Mahendra Santa, Dondapati Mrutyam Jayaram and Hima Teja Vallipi, celebrate after winning bronze medal at the Asian Junior Athletics Championship in Dubai on 27 April 2024.