Hello and welcome to Sportstar's Live coverage of Day four of the IAAF World Championships in Doha.
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That brings us to the end of today's blog. Day six of the IAAF World Championships will see India's P.U. Chithra feature in the 1500m heats. For full information on the Indians in the fray and the schedule, click here - IAAF World Championships 2019: Complete schedule, events, timings in IST, Indians in action . Thanks for tuning in!
It's a day of positives for India as Avinash Sable made it to the men's 3000m steeplechase final, while Annu Rani finished eighth in the women's javelin throw final.
Avinash made it to the men's 3000m steeplechase final in dramatic fashion . He had originally finished seventh in his heats and 20th overall and did not find a place in the final as only the top three in each of the three heats and the next six fastest progressed. However, it was seen that Avinash tumbled twice after being obstructed by Nigate and following a protest from the Athletic Federation of Indian (AFI), and was awarded a spot in the final.
Annu also outdid herself as she finished eighth out of 12 competitors in the javelin final. It marks her career's best result, and she also broke her own national record in the process, making this a very special campaign for her.
-- That's the end of her campaign. Annu records a 57.93m throw in her last attempt, her worst of the evening, to round things off.
-- Annu is now on to her last throw! Can she make it count?
-- Things aren't looking too great for Annu now. She manages only 58.49m, her second worst throw of the championships, in her fifth attempt. She now has only one attempt remaining and is still on the eighth and last spot.
-- Meanwhile, there's some insane drama in the men's pole vault final! It's a battle of nerves and talent as defending champion Sam Kendricks and teenager Armand Duplantis put up a spectacular display. Both of them have cleared a dizzying height of 5.97m and are still at it for the gold medal!
-- With a fourth attempt of 60.40m, Annu is currently in the eighth position. Quick reminder, she is the first Indian to make it to the women's javelin throw final in the IAAF World Athletics Championships!
-- With a day's best of 61.12m, Annu finishes in the top 8 and will have three more attempts.
-- Not the best of attempts for Annu. She registers 60.20m in her third attempt and is currently in the seventh spot.
-- She betters her opening throw - Annu registers a distance of 61.12m in her second throw. China's Huihui Lyu leads the pack with a throw of 65.06m.
-- Annu begins her finals campaign with a throw of 59.25m. That's close to 2m more than her first throw of 57.05m yesterday. At the end of the first round, the Indian is ranked fifth in the 12-member final.
-- Annu makes her way to the track and is greeted by a loud cheer! Can she spring up a surprise here? She will be the ninth athlete to throw in the women's javelin throw final.
-- Annu Rani will be in action in a little over 20 minutes from now, ladies and gents. The national champion had secured a new national record yesterday when she threw massive 62.43m and eased her way into the women's javelin throw final. She also became the first Indian women to make it to the javelin final at the IAAF World Athletics Championships.
-- That 'q' beside Avinash's name means everything now, doesn't it?
-- Fantastic news coming in - Avinash Sable has made the final! He tumbled twice after being tripped by Ethiopia's Takele Nigate and following the Indian team's appeal, Avinash has qualified for Friday's final! This is BIG!
He had originally finished seventh in his heats and 20th overall and did not find a place in the final as only the top three in each of the three heats and the next six fastest progressed. However, it was seen that Avinash tumbled twice after being obstructed by Nigate and following a protest from the Athletic Federation of Indian (AFI), he has been awarded a spot in the final.
-- Annu Rani will be in action in the women's javelin throw at 23:50 IST . Stay tuned for that one!
-- It's a terrific run from the 25-year-old Indian, but it won't be enough to earn him a place in the final. He suffered a tumble at the very start and another hiccup at a water jump barrier, but did oh so very well to recover and complete the race in a national record timing. And mind you, he was competing against some of the very best in the business! Great run from the steeplechaser.
-- Avinash Sable sets a new national record and finishes seventh! He had two tumbles but recovered remarkably well to clock a timing of 8:25:23, a new national record! That is over three seconds faster than his previous best of 8:28.94!
-- The defending champion, the World champion and the Commonwealth champion - Conseslus Kipruto - will be in the same Heat as Avinash! And the race has begun.... oh no it's an unfortunate start for Avinash! He gets caught in the starting melee and takes a tumble! Fortunately, he springs on to his feet and is making his way ahead.
-- Right then, the first two heats have ended and Avinash will be in action in a few minutes from now! Quick reminder - the top three in each heat and the six next fastest runners will advance to Friday's final.
-- Another interesting nugget of information before Avinash's race - he became the first Indian male steeplechaser to reach the IAAF World Athletics Championships since Deena Ram did so in 1991. That's 28 long years!
-- The last time Avinash ran at Doha's Khalifa Stadium, he bagged a silver medal. Surely, that has to be a massive morale-booster for him going into today's heats.
-- Avinash will participate in the third heat and will run on lane 1. Out of the 16 runners, 13 of them have registered better timings than Avinash. An uphill task ahead for the Indian?
-- Did you know? Avinash has served the Indian Army and was once posted in Kargil! This man, at the age of 25, has perhaps seen it all!
-- Avinash had shattered his own record to set a new national record at the Federation Cup in March. He recorded a timing of record time of 8:28.94, shaving off nearly a second from his previous best of 8:29:80.
We'll have two Indians in action today - Annu Rani and Avinash Sable. Annu put up a sensational performance yesterday to set a new national record of 62.43m and eased her way into the women's javelin throw final. She also became the first Indian women to make it to the javelin final at the IAAF World Athletics Championships. Annu's final will begin at 23:50 IST .
Avinash, who won the silver medal in the Asian Athletics Championships in April this year, will take to the track in the men's 3000m steeplechase heats. Sable's event is set to begin post 20:45 IST .
You can find the entire schedule here - IAAF World Championships 2019: Complete schedule, events, timings in IST, Indians in action
DAY 4 HIGHLIGHTS:
-- Anjali finishes sixth in her Heat with a timing of 52.33s.
-- Anjali Devi takes to the track now! Once again, she will be running on lane 7.
-- It's official, Annu Rani has qualified for the final! With a new national record throw of 62.43m, Annu becomes the first Indian to reach the final round of the women’s javelin throw event at the IAAF World Championships.
-- Woah, this one's even bigger! Diamond League champion Huihui Lyu throws a spectacular 67.27 to also assure herself of a spot in the final! As it stands, Annu Rani is on the fifth spot in the women's javelin throw and remains in contention of making it to the final.
-- Meanwhile, in Group B of the women's javelin throw, Germany's Christin Hussong has sealed her place in the final off her very first throw! The 2018 European Championships gold medallist recorded a massive 65.29 in her first throw to cruise into the final via automatic qualification.
-- Aaaaand, we're back! Anjali Devi will be in action in a few minutes from now. She will run on lane 7 in heat 6. The top three from each heat and the next six fastest runners will qualify for the semifinal.
-- Archana's campaign comes to an end as she finishes last in her heat with a timing of 23.65s.
-- Archana, with a PB and SB of 23.18s, is the second slowest woman in the heat. She will be running in lane 4.
We now move to the women's 200m heats where Archana Suseendran will be in action! She will take part in Heat 2.
-- Annu registers a third and final throw of 60.50m. She remains in contention for a spot in the final and is currently on the third spot in Group A. The top 12 throwers from both Groups will advance to the final. With a huge throw of 62.43m, Annu looks likely to seal her berth in the final.
-- SHE'S DONE IT! ANNU RANI MAKES A NEW NATIONAL RECORD! We literally just spoke about Annu's national record and she's gone ahead and outdone herself by securing a new national record throw of 62.43m! At the end of two throws, Annu is second on the table in Group A. China's Liu leads the pack with a throw of 63.48m.
-- If Annu can get close to her personal best throw of 62.34m, she stands a strong chance here. She is the reigning national champion and is the first Indian woman javelin thrower to cross the 60m mark!
-- Annu begins her campaign with a first throw of 57.05m. The automatic qualification mark is set at 63.50m.
DAY 3 REVIEW:
The third day saw the Indian 4*400m mixed relay team finish seventh in the final. The quartet of Muhammed Anas, V.K. Vismaya, Jisna Mathew and Noah Nirmal Tom, recorded a season-best timing of 3.15.77.
Despite the seventh-placed finish, it was all smiles for the Indian team as they had already secured their berth at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics by virtue of qualifying for Sunday's final. The Indians finished third in their heat and seventh overall on Saturday with a timing of 3:16.14 to qualify for the finals, which ensured them an Olympic berth.
USA took the gold medal and in the process, Allyson Felix became the most decorated performer in World Athletics Championships as she picked her 12th medal at the Championships, one more than sprint icon Usain Bolt.
In the women's 100m event, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won her eighth World Athletics Championships title after claiming gold in the women's 100m final in Doha, storming to the finish in 10.71 seconds.
ICYMI: Newly crowned world 100m champion Christian Coleman withdrew from the 200m race. FULL REPORT| World champion Coleman withdraws from 200m
DAY 2 REVIEW:
Despite a baton fumble just before the last lap, India recovered nicely and entered the 4x400m mixed relay final at the World Athletics Championships in Doha on Saturday night.
The all-Kerala quartet of Muhammed Anas, V.K. Vismaya, Jisna Mathew and Noah Nirmal Tom clocked a season-best 3:16.14s to finish third in the semifinal, edging out Belgium by two hundredths of a second.
The final entry also brought India a Tokyo Olympics berth given to the top eight finishers of the mixed relay.
But, there were a few anxious moments as there was a small delay in the final baton exchange between Mathew and Tom who ran the last lap.
- Jabir, Dutee crash out -
Meanwhile, M.P. Jabir finished fifth, with 49.71s, in the men's 400m hurdles semifinal and failed to qualify for the final.
The 23-year-old Asian bronze medallist, who ran in the last lane, finished 16th overall, an impressive finish on the big stage.
Norway's Karsten Warholm, the world's fastest hurdler this year, topped the semifinals with 48.28s.
- Christian Coleman blasts to 100m gold -
Christian Coleman stormed to victory in the 100 metres at the World Championships in Doha on Saturday, emphatically shrugging off the missed drug test controversy which had threatened to derail his career.
The 23-year-old American, who escaped a doping ban earlier this month on a technicality, swept over the finish line in a world-leading 9.76sec to claim his first major outdoor championship gold medal.
Defending champion Justin Gatlin took silver in 9.89sec while Canada's Andre De Grasse claimed bronze in 9.90sec.
It completed a flawless championship campaign for Coleman, who had been the only man to duck under 10 seconds in both Friday's opening rounds and Saturday's semifinals.
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