Asian Games: Murali Sreeshankar won silver after injury forced him out of the last two jumps

India’s Murali Sreeshankar competes in the men’s long jump final. (AP photo) NEW DELHI: India’s Murali Sreeshankar on Monday clinched a silver medal in the men’s long jump at the 2026 Asian Games with a personal best of 8.07m despite an injury forcing him to pull out of the final two attempts.Sreeshankar was in second place when he was injured in the fourth attempt. Unable to continue, the Indian long jumper had to watch from the sidelines as his rivals completed their remaining jumps, hoping none of them would better his 8.07m.Fortunately for Sreeshankar, none of the challengers managed to overcome his distance, allowing him to retain the silver medal in an emotional finish.China’s Yuhao Shi won gold with a best of 8.17m, while Uzbekistan’s Anvar Anvarov took bronze with 8.06m. Another finalist from India, Solomon David, finished seventh with a best of 7.70m.Asian Games full coverage | Medal Tally | Schedule

Sreeshankar is holding his own despite the injury

The silver was particularly significant given the circumstances of Sreeshankar’s competition. After settling into the medal positions, the Indian was unable to complete the last two laps due to injury.With his competition over, there was nothing to do but wait and watch as the remaining athletes attempted to beat his 8.07m effort.No one could, ensuring that Sreeshankar remained second and India added another athletics medal to its tally.

Parul Chaudhary adds another bronze

Earlier, Parul Chaudhary added another medal to India’s athletics tally by winning bronze in the women’s 5000m final in 15:14.61.Bahrain’s Winfred Yavi won gold in 15:10.18, while Japan’s Nozomi Tanaka took silver in 15:11.65.It was Parulova’s second bronze medal of the ongoing Games after previously finishing third in the women’s 3000m steeplechase. She clocked a national record of 9:08.67 in that event, becoming the first Indian woman to break the 9:10 mark.Parul’s latest medal was added to the Asian Games record. In Hangzhou 2022, she won gold in the 5000 meters and silver in the steeplechase. She has now collected two bronze medals in Japan.In the steeplechase, Bahrain’s Yavi won gold in a Games record 9:04.36, while Kazakhstan’s Norah Tanui took silver in 9:06.82. India’s Ankita finished fourth in 9:19.24.