Eighteen-year-old hammer thrower Anushka Yadav smashed a nine-year-old National record, pole vaulter Dev Meena bettered the National record and hurdler Jyothi Yarraji made a stunning comeback from injury in the National inter-state athletics meet at the Kalinga Stadium here on Wednesday.

The evening belonged to an unheralded Anushka, a National under-20 record holder hailing from Baghpat, as she unexpectedly broke the National mark in her second attempt (65.64m). She bettered it in her last throw to log 67.02m, a five-plus metres improvement on her previous best of 62.89m, to qualify for the Asian Games.

“I had a knee injury in March while I was handling agricultural equipment to help my father in our field. I made a good recovery to perform here,” said Anushka.

Meena overcame the challenges of competing in humid weather by staying hydrated and booked his Asiad spot with a mark of 5.46m.

Jyothi asserted her class as she timed 13.14 in the women’s 100m hurdles heats to achieve Asian Games qualification before clocking 12.99 in the final to win the race. “I waited for this moment. The same day last year I got injured. I was in no mood to give up,” Jyothi.

National record holder Gulveer Singh, who is still acclimatising after returning from his training base in the USA a week ago, ran a slow race in ‘hot’ morning conditions to clock 13:52.92 and emerge victorious. However, he could not achieve the coveted qualification mark.

Altogether 15 athletes qualified in the men’s 800m heats.

The results (finals): Men: 5000m (Asiad Q mark 13:39.18): 1. Gulveer Singh (UP) 13:52.92, 2. Abhishek Pal (UP) 13:54.18, 3. Harmanjot Singh (Pun) 13:54.60; Pole vault (Asiad Q mark 5.45m): 1. Dev Meena (MP) 5.46m (NR, Old 5.45m, Kuldeep Kumar, 2026), 2. Reegan G. (TN) 5.30m, 3. Kuldeep Kumar (MP) 5.20m.

Women: 5000m (Asiad Q mark 15:36.58): 1. Seema (HP) 16:11.04, 2. Bharti (Har) 16:17.10, 3. Ravina Gayakwad (Mah) 16:32.92; 100m hurdles (Asiad Q mark 13.34): 1. Jyothi Yarraji (AP) 12.99, 2. Nandhini K. (TN) 13.22, 3. Pragyan Prasanti Sahu (Odi) 13.48; Triple jump (Asiad Q mark 13.34m): 1. I. Asha Ilango (TN) 13.89m (NMR, Old 13.72m, Mayookha Johny, 2014), 2. Niharika Vashisht (Pun) 13.22m, 3. Mallala Anusha (AP) 13.13m; Hammer (Asiad Q mark 61.72m): 1. Anushka Yadav (UP) 67.02m (NR, Old 65.25m, Sarita Singh, 2017), 2. Tanya Chaudhary (UP) 61.70m, 3. Harshita Sehrawat (Del) 60.92m.

Armand “Mondo” Duplantis cruised to pole vault victory in the opening Diamond League meeting of the season on Saturday (May 16, 2026), but failed to improve his own world record.

There was a surprise in the men’s 100m as Gift Leotlela of South Africa pipped Ferdinand Omanyala and Kenneth Bednarek in a photo finish to win a Diamond League event for the first time.

High-quality women’s 200m and 100m hurdles were won by Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson and Olympic champion Masai Russell respectively, but Karsten Warholm was shocked in the 300m hurdles.

Duplantis already had victory sewn up in the pole vault after just two jumps before he eased to a new Shanghai meeting record in 6.12m.

The Swede, who has not lost a competition since 2023, then raised the bar to a world record 6.32m but failed with all three attempts to beat his old mark.

Duplantis told AFP he felt the record had been possible.

“I feel really good jumping right now,” said Duplantis, who has lengthened his run-up by two paces this season.

“I would say body-wise I was a little bit too busy the past few weeks. But other than that I’m happy with the way I performed.”

Norway’s Warholm clocked two world bests in the little-raced 300m hurdles last season but was stunned by 0.04sec by Brazil’s Alison Dos Santos (33.01).

“I’m a little bit mad that I didn’t win,” said Warholm.

“I think he was really starting to get tired and I thought maybe I had him there. This is how competing should be, you should never know the outcome.”

Leotlela said his men’s 100m victory in 9.97sec had been the perfect start to his outdoor year.

“I think tonight sets the tone for the rest of the season,” he said. “I’m very happy, excited for what’s to come.”

American Bednarek was just 100th of a second behind Leotlela in third, given the same 9.98sec time as Kenya’s Omanyala.

“I feel pretty good,” said Bednarek, the 200m silver medallist at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

“I didn’t execute what I wanted to in the first half of the race but I’m happy with the results.”

‘Stay healthy’

Jamaica’s Jackson crossed the line in the 200m in 22.07 to beat Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas (22.26), who was running her first Diamond League race for three years, with American Anavia Battle third in 22.40.

“This year, I just want to stay healthy,” said Jackson.

“Next season’s a world championship year, so I just want to stay as healthy as possible.”

Former world 100m world champion Sha’Carri Richardson of the United States could only finish fourth in 20.42 and world silver medallist Amy Hunt of Great Britain was fifth.

Jessica Schilder recorded the performance of the night as she propelled the shot to a Diamond League record and became the first woman to exceed 21 metres since 1999.

The Dutchwoman launched her huge 21.09m effort in the fifth round to relegate two-time world champion Chase Jackson (20.46) to second place.

“I can’t comprehend. It is such a huge thing, it is crazy,” Schilder said of breaking the 21-metre barrier.

In the women’s 100m hurdles, the American Russell’s superb 12.25 was good enough to beat Bahamian world indoor champion Devynne Charlton (12.38), with world record holder Tobi Amusan of Nigeria third in 12.41.

Mark English’s late burst snatched a dramatic men’s 800m with a meeting record of 1:43.85.

The 33-year-old Irishman dipped past Botswana’s Kethobogile Haingura on the line, having come from six runners back in the final 30 metres.

In the men’s 110m hurdles, Jamal Britt upset his fellow American and world champion Cordell Tinch to win with a personal best-equalling 13.07sec.