Srishankar Eyes Gold After Qualifying for Long Jump Final at Nagoya Asian Games

Murali Srishankar and his compatriot David Patturaj have both secured places in the men’s long‑jump final scheduled for Monday at Nagoya City’s Mizuhō Park Stadium.

Srishankar’s longest effort in the qualifiers was 7.84 m, which placed him second in Group B and second overall when the two groups were combined. Patturaj’s best effort of 7.62 m earned him third in Group A and seventh in the overall ranking.

The qualification standard was 7.90 m. Only one athlete – Uzbekistan’s Anvar Anvarov – cleared that distance, leaping 8.00 m. The rest of the finalists, including the two Indians, advanced on the basis of their relative performance.

The silver‑medallist from the Hangzhou Games, Srishankar, is now focused on converting his previous podium finish into gold. He returned to competition after a severe patellar‑tendon injury in April 2024 that cost him a place at the Paris Olympics. Since his comeback at the 2026 National Inter‑State Senior Athletics Championship, he has been in strong form, highlighted by a silver at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.