Open National Athletics shifted from Jamshedpur to New Delhi

NEW DELHI: The 46th National Open Athletics Championship has been shifted from Jamshedpur to New Delhi citing the large distance between the steel city and the training centres in Patiala and Bangalore.

The event will now be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in the national capital from October 5 to 8.

"The venue of the championships has been changed on the advice of foreign and Indian coaches, who are preparing Indian athletes for the Doha Asian Games, Athletics Federation of India Secretary Lalit Bhanot said.

He said Jamshedpur was very far from the training centres in Patiala and Bangalore.

"The change of venue will not only save training and journey time, but also avoid the risk of athletes falling sick" before the quadrennial Games in the Qatar capital to be held from December 1 to 15, Bhanot added.