Asian Athletics Championships: Sreeshankar Murali, Shaili Singh headline 54-member Indian squad

The Athletics Federation of India on Thursday announced a 54-member Indian squad for the Asian Athletics Championships to be held in Bangkok, Thailand from July 12 to 16.

The team was picked based on performances throughout the season and as long as the athletes in various competitions met the qualification marks set by the AFI. A preliminary team was selected during the Federation Cup back in May and the team was confirmed after the Inter-State Athletics Championships which concluded on Monday in Bhubaneshwar.

Leading the Indian contingent in Bangkok will be Sreeshankar Murali, the long jumper who recently qualified for the Asian Games and World Championships at the Inter-State competition earlier this week. He is also due to participate in the Lausanne Diamond League in Switzerland on June 30, his second Diamond League event of the 2023 season.

Olympic javelin champion Neeraj Chopra, who will join Sreeshankar in Lausanne, and Commonwealth Games silver medallist 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable have not been selected because of their preparation for the Athletics World Championships due to be held in August in Budapest, Hungary.

2018 Asian Games shotput champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor (who set a new national record in Bhubaneshwar), decathlon athlete Tejaswin Shankar, long jumper Shaili Singh and hurdler Jyothi Yarraji are also a part of...

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