Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra will spearhead 28-member strong Indian challenge at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary
from August 19 to 27.
Of the 28 athletes , nine made the cut via entry standards while 16 qualified via world ranking .Former U-20 World Athletics Championships silver medalist Shaili Singh, 19, the youngest member of the contingent will be among the 15 debutants at the meet
Asian record holder shot putter Tajinderpal Toor, will miss the event as he is recovering from a groin injury .Javelin thrower Rohit Yadav is also out as because of a elbow injury.
National record holder high jumper Tejaswin Shankar, 800m runner K M Chanda, and 20km race walker Priyanka Goswami (also a national record holder) have also decided to opt out of the Championships as they wanted to concentrate on the Hangzhou Asian Games scheduled to be held from September 23–October 8.
India have so far won only two medals at the World Athletics Championships. Anju Bobby George won a bronze in the women’s long jump in Paris in 2003 while Neeraj Chopra won a silver in the javelin throw last year in Eugene.
Race walker Ram Baboo, meanwhile, became the first Indian athlete to qualify for the Championships via the world ranking route earlier this year. Ajay Kumar Saroj, meanwhile, made the list after his win at the Asian Athletics Championships in July.
The Sports Ministry is funding the participation of the contingent for the Championships . A 42-member contingent, including coaches and support staff, is heading for the world event.
The funding will cover the costs of the team’s training, boarding and lodging, airfare, visa, and out-of-pocket allowance, among other expenditures.
Out of the 28 competing athletes, 13 are from the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) and 15 will be competing at the Worlds for the very first time. Former U-20 World Athletics Championships silver medalist Shaili Singh, 19, is the youngest member of the contingent. This is set to be her first senior World Championships this year.
In the previous edition, six individuals reached the finals at the World Championships, with three of them making it to the top-eight finishes and Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra returning with a historic silver medal. That made it India’s best performance ever at the event.
The squad
Women: Jyothi Yarraji (100m Hurdles), Parul Chaudhary (3000m Steeplechase), Shaili Singh (Long Jump), Annu Rani (Javelin Throw), Bhawna Jat (20km Race Walk).
Men: Krishan Kumar (800m), Ajay Kumar Saroj (1500m), Santhosh Kumar Tamilarnsan (400m Hurdles), Avinash Mukund Sable (3000m Steeplechase), Sarvesh Anil Kushare (High Jump),Jeswin Aldrin, M Sreeshankar (Long Jump), Praveen Chithravel, Abdulla Aboobacker , Eldhose Paul (Triple Jump), Neeraj Chopra , DP Manu , Kishore Kumar Jena (Javelin Throw),
Akashdeep Singh , Vikash Singh , Paramjeet Singh (20km Race Walk), Ram Baboo (35km Race Walk), Amoj Jacob, Muhammed Ajmal, Muhammed Anas, Rajesh Ramesh, Anil Rajalingam, Mijo Chacko Kurian (Men’s 4x400m Relay).
Each country can send a maximum of three qualified athletes – one qualified team in case of relay teams – per event at the World Championships . Wild card entries, reserved only for reigning world champions and winners of select high-priority athletics events from last year.