Indian sprinters
Gurindervir, who holds the national record with a personal best of 10.09 seconds, demonstrated composure in Heat 4. He maintained a steady pace throughout the race to finish second with a time of 10.38 seconds, trailing only Oman’s Malham Al Balushi, who clocked 10.29 seconds. Following his performance, the sprinter expressed confidence in his form, stating that he intends to improve his speed in the upcoming rounds.
Strong finishes secure progression for Indian duo
Animesh Kujur, who holds a personal best of 10.14 seconds, faced a more challenging path in Heat 1. Despite appearing to struggle during the initial stages of the race, Kujur surged during the final 25 metres to secure a third-place finish with a time of 10.36 seconds. The heat was dominated by Thailand’s Puripol Boonson, who clocked an impressive 9.95 seconds, narrowly missing the Asian Games record by just 0.03 seconds. China’s Keli Zeng took second place in 10.22 seconds.
The qualifying format for the event required athletes to finish in the top three of their respective heats to advance automatically, with the six fastest remaining times across all heats also moving forward. With the semifinals scheduled for Friday, both Indian sprinters remain in contention for the marquee event. Gurindervir will look to leverage his experience as a national record holder, while Kujur aims to build on the momentum gained from his late-race surge in the opening round.
