Hima Das returned to the her favourite 400-metre race with a win.
Hima Das returned to the 400-metre race with a win as she clocked a season-best time of 52.09 seconds in the Nove Mesto nad Metuji Grand Prix on Saturday.
This is the first time Hima was competing in the 400m event after she had to pull out of the Asian Athletics Championship in April this year with a back spasm. The event has been picked by Hima’s coaching staff as the event she will specialize on with the 2020 Olympics in mind.
This timing is a season-best for Hima in the 400-metre event. Her season-best performance had been 52.88 seconds before Saturday. Her personal best is 50.79 seconds, recorded at the Asian Games last year.
In other events, India's MP Jabir won the 400m hurdles gold with a time of 49.66 seconds while Muhammed Anas won the silver in 200m event in 20.95s.
5th gold in July
This is 19-year-old Hima's fifth gold since July 2 when she ran her first competitive race in Europe.
In her first competitive 200m race of the year, the old Assam runner had clocked 23.65 seconds on her way to gold at the Poznan Athletics Grand Prix in Poland on July 2. After that, she won her second 200m gold at the Kutno Athletics Meet, also in Poland, on July 7 with a time of 23.97 seconds.
On July 13, she won her third 200m gold at the Kladno Athletics Meet in the Czech Republic with a time of 23.43.
Hima Das clinched her fourth gold of the fortnight as she won the 200m race with a creditable time in the Tabor Athletics Meet in the Czech Republic.
Hima Das in in contention for adding another gold medal to her tally as the silver won by India's 4x400 mixed relay race team at the Asian Games may well be upgraded. Bahrain is set to lose the top spot with Kemi Adekoya being potentially getting handed a four-year ban by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) after failing a dope test.
India's mixed relay race team was made of Hima Das, Mohammad Anas, M R Poovamma and Arokia Rajiv secured a silver medal for themselves in the event in Jakarta last year.
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