Two athletes exchange blows at junior meet

The ongoing junior national athletics championship turned a bit ugly late Saturday when two athletes fought midway through the under-20 decathlon pole vault event for boys.

Tamil Nadu's Vivekanandan suffered cuts to his neck and back after an altercation with Delhi's Paramjeet Singh, who was later expelled from the championship.

The ongoing junior national athletics championship turned a bit ugly late Saturday when two athletes fought midway through the under-20 decathlon pole vault event for boys.

It is said that Delhi's Paramjeet Singh and Tamil Nadu's Vivekanandan engaged themselves in verbal exchanges and later came to blows. The latter, who hails from Coimbatore, suffered severe cuts in both his neck and waist.

The referee for the combined events quickly reacted and expelled Paramjeet from the championship. But Vivekanandan, who was bleeding profusely, went on to participate in the rest of the events with a temporary plaster for the gold.

He was later taken to a private hospital for sutures. The Tamil Nadu team manager lodged a protest on Sunday. "This is not good for the sport. We cannot tolerate such things on the field," said C.K. Valson, the AFI Secretary.