Samardeep Gill wins shot put gold, qualifies for CWG at National Athletics meet
Synopsis
A 25-year-old from Madhya Pradesh just outthrew one of India's most decorated field athletes. Samardeep Singh Gill's fourth-attempt 20.46m not only beat two-time Asian Games champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor but also locked in a Commonwealth Games berth — a generational statement on the final day at Birsa Munda Stadium.
Key Takeaways
Samardeep Singh Gill won men's shot put gold with 20.46m , surpassing the CWG qualification mark of 20.36m .
Two-time Asian Games champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor finished second with a best of 20.07m .
Yashas P and Santhosh Kumar T qualified for the CWG in the men's 400m hurdles , clocking 49.00s and 49.06s respectively.
Praveen Chithravel cleared the CWG triple jump standard with a leap of 17.08m .
Odisha's Animesh Kujur narrowly missed CWG qualification in the men's 200m by 0.03 seconds .
Men's javelin winner Shivam Lohakare threw 81.71m but fell short of the CWG mark of 82.61m .
Samardeep Singh Gill, the 25-year-old shot putter from Madhya Pradesh, clinched gold in the men's shot put event at the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition in Ranchi on Monday, 25 May, surpassing two-time Asian Games champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor of Punjab and breaching the Commonwealth Games qualification mark in the process. The final-day showdown at Birsa Munda Stadium produced one of the meet's most compelling individual contests.
How Gill Overcame Toor
Toor opened with authority, launching a throw of 20.07m to set an early benchmark. Gill, however, produced the decisive effort in his fourth attempt, registering 20.46m — a mark that not only moved him to the top of the standings but also cleared the CWG qualification standard of 20.36m. Toor could not respond, managing only 20.06m in his final throw. Punjab's Karanveer Singh finished third with 19.38m.
CWG Berths Across Events
The final day yielded multiple Commonwealth Games qualifications. In the men's 400m hurdles, Karnataka's Yashas P won gold in 49.00 seconds and NCOE Trivandrum athlete Santhosh Kumar T finished second in 49.06 seconds — both comfortably inside the qualification standard of 50.27 seconds. Navy's Subhas Das took bronze in 50.51 seconds.
In the men's triple jump, JSW athlete Praveen Chithravel leapt 17.08m to win gold and surpass the CWG mark of 16.89m. Air Force jumper Abdulla Aboockar was second at 16.63m and Tamil Nadu's Gailey Venister third at 16.37m.
Near Misses and Podium Highlights
Odisha sprinter Animesh Kujur narrowly missed CWG qualification in the men's 200m, clocking 20.64 seconds against the required 20.61 seconds. Kerala's Jishu Prasad finished second in 20.98 seconds and Reliance athlete Abhay Singh third in 21.01 seconds.
In the men's javelin, Maharashtra's Shivam Lohakare won gold with a best throw of 81.71m, ahead of Rajasthan's Yashvir Singh (80.80m) and Railway Sports' Rohit Yadav (80.40m). None, however, crossed the CWG qualification mark of 82.61m.
Women's Events Summary
Himachal Pradesh's Kusum Thakur won the women's 200m in 23.94 seconds, edging Haryana's Tamana (24.06 seconds) and Maharashtra's Sudeshna H (24.07 seconds). Tamil Nadu's Vithya Ramraj took the women's 400m hurdles title in 56.61 seconds.
Reliance athlete Seema claimed women's 5,000m gold in 16:04.83, while Uttar Pradesh's Khyati Mathur topped the women's high jump with a clearance of 1.82m. Kerala's Anamika KA won the women's heptathlon with 5,685 points, and JSW's Pooja secured women's 800m gold in 2:02.42.
Distance and Middle-Distance Results
Karnataka's Shivaji Parashuram won the men's 5,000m in 14:14.43 seconds, ahead of Madhya Pradesh's Vinod Singh (14:15.50) and Uttarakhand's Deepak Bhatt (14:17.72). Haryana's Krishan Kumar claimed men's 800m gold in 1:47.68 seconds.
With multiple CWG slots confirmed and several athletes within fractions of qualifying standards, the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition signals a competitive Indian athletics squad taking shape ahead of the Commonwealth Games.
Point of View
Where the next generation is now pushing the established hierarchy on merit. Toor's inability to respond beyond 20.06m in the final round, after opening at 20.07m, suggests the veteran may be under mounting pressure from younger throwers. The near-misses in javelin and the men's 200m, however, expose a recurring pattern in Indian athletics: athletes peaking just below CWG standards at domestic meets, raising questions about whether competition formats and training loads are calibrated for peak performance at the right moment.
NationPress
9 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How did Samardeep Gill qualify for the Commonwealth Games?
Samardeep Singh Gill qualified by throwing 20.46m in his fourth attempt at the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition in Ranchi, clearing the CWG qualification mark of 20.36m . His throw also earned him the gold medal, finishing ahead of Tajinderpal Singh Toor.
What was Tajinderpal Singh Toor's performance at the national meet?
Tajinderpal Singh Toor, a two-time Asian Games champion, opened with 20.07m but could not match Gill's fourth-attempt throw of 20.46m. Toor managed only 20.06m in his final attempt, finishing second.
Which other athletes qualified for the Commonwealth Games at this meet?
Karnataka's Yashas P (49.00s) and NCOE Trivandrum's Santhosh Kumar T (49.06s) qualified in the men's 400m hurdles, and JSW's Praveen Chithravel qualified in the men's triple jump with a leap of 17.08m — all inside their respective CWG standards.
Who narrowly missed CWG qualification at the national meet?
Odisha sprinter Animesh Kujur missed the men's 200m CWG qualification standard by just 0.03 seconds , clocking 20.64s against the required 20.61s. Maharashtra's Shivam Lohakare also fell short in the javelin, throwing 81.71m against a standard of 82.61m.
Where was the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition held?
The competition was held at Birsa Munda Stadium in Ranchi , Jharkhand, with the final day of events taking place on 25 May .
