Toor finally books Tokyo ticket, in style
Shot-putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor made the long wait count, finally booking a Tokyo Olympics ticket in style with a new National record of 21.49m at the fourth Indian Grand Prix at Patiala on Monday and bettering the Olympic qualifying mark by some distance. The Olympic mark is set at 21.10m.
It had been a frustrating wait for the athlete who kept insisting he was in fine form during training and had the confidence of his coach M.S. Dhillon to make the cut.
During the Federation Cup in April, Dhillon had said it was not a question of if but when Toor would do it. A series of cancelled foreign trips for training and competition did not make things easier.
In fact, every one of his four valid throws went past the Olympic mark — a series of 21.28m and a couple of 21.13m throws.
“My target was close to 21.50m and I got it on my first throw. Still, there is a long way to go for me and my target is at least 22m. I hope to do even better at the inter-state championships,” Toor said after the event.
Discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur, meanwhile, improved her own three-month old national record by more than a metre, managing a 66.59m throw that, if replicated, would make her a serious medal contender at Tokyo going by the last two editions. That she was the only competitor in her event did not affect her performance.
