Abdulla Aboobacker, Rosy Meena Paulraj among big names to headline Indian Grand Prix in Chennai

Athletes will be competing for honours in nine events: 200m, 400m, 400m Hurdles, 1500m, 5000m, Pole Vault, Triple Jump, Shot Put, and Javelin Throw.

Abdulla Aboobacker in action in men’s triple jump during the 3rd Indian Open Jumps Competition 2024. | Photo Credit: MURALI KUMAR K / The Hindu

The second Indian Grand Prix of the season, organised by the Tamil Nadu Athletic Association (TNAA) under the aegis of the Athletic Federation of India (AFI), will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.

Chief guest Adille Sumariwalla, vice president, World Athletics, will flag off the competition.

Top athletes from across the country, as well as athletes from the Indian camp, will be competing for honours in nine events: 200m, 400m, 400m Hurdles, 1500m, 5000m, Pole Vault, Triple Jump, Shot Put, and Javelin Throw.

The competition is one of the selection trials for this year’s Paris Olympics. There are a total of four Grand Prix competitions, and the first one took place in Bengaluru in April.

Triple-jumper Abdulla Aboobacker, 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games (CWG) silver-medallist and 2023 Asian Athletics Championships gold-medallist, will be a prominent name to watch out for.

Rosy Meena Paulraj, who holds the national record, Pavithra Venkatesh, and Baranica Elangovan will compete in the women’s pole vault event. Santhosh and K. Avinash in the men’s 200m and 400m, respectively, and Mohammed Salahuddin in the men’s triple jump are some of the elite Tamil Nadu athletes participating in the competition.

“I think our Tamil Nadu athletes will perform well. The newly-laid track will be helpful for them to give a better performance,” said TNAA Secretary C. Latha.