Dev Meena, Anushka Yadav, and Jyothi Yarraji delivered three standout performances on the opening day of the 65th National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday, 24 June, with all three athletes also securing berths for the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. The evening session under the floodlights produced a national record, a senior women's hammer throw record, and a sub-13-second comeback run that had the stadium on its feet.

Dev Meena Breaks His Own Pole Vault National Record

Representing Madhya Pradesh, pole vaulter Dev Meena cleared 5.46m — surpassing the national record of 5.45m he had jointly held with training partner Kuldeep Kumar, also of Madhya Pradesh. The clearance also eclipsed the Asian Games qualification mark of 5.45m, confirming his place on the plane to Japan. The top three finishers in the event simultaneously erased the meet record of 5.20m set by M Gowtham in 2025.

'The competition was challenging; nonetheless, I'm excited to have enhanced my profile,' Meena said after his winning vault. Reegan G of Tamil Nadu finished second with 5.30m, while Kuldeep Kumar took bronze at 5.20m.

18-Year-Old Anushka Yadav Rewrites Hammer Throw Record Books

At the throwing arena, Anushka Yadav — just 18 years old and representing Uttar Pradesh — produced the most jaw-dropping result of the day. Her winning throw of 67.02m shattered the senior national record of 65.25m set by Sarita A Singh in 2017 and the meet record of 65.03m set by Rachna in 2023. The throw also cleared the Asian Games qualification mark of 61.72m with considerable margin.

Notably, Anushka had been on the injured list as recently as March 2026. 'I'm thankful to my family for all the support as I was on the injured list earlier in March,' she said. 'I can't express my happiness of booking a berth to board a flight to the Japan Asian Games.' Tanya Chaudhary (Uttar Pradesh) took silver with 61.70m, narrowly missing the qualification mark, while Harshita Sehrawat (Delhi) finished third at 60.92m.

Jyothi Yarraji's Emotional Comeback — Sub-13 Seconds After 12 Months Out

The most emotionally charged moment of the evening belonged to Jyothi Yarraji, the Asian Games silver medallist and national record holder in the women's 100m hurdles. Returning after 12 months of rehabilitation following an injury sustained on 24 June 2025 — exactly one year before her comeback race — Yarraji clocked 12.99 seconds to win gold and better the Asian Games qualification mark of 13.34 seconds, which she had already cleared in the heats.

'It's sheer irony that I got injured on June 24 last year, and after 12 long agonising months of rehab, I'm making a comeback — that too with sub-13 seconds for the 100m hurdles,' said the Andhra Pradesh athlete. Nandhini K of Tamil Nadu claimed silver in 13.22 secs, also securing the Asian Games qualification mark, while Pragyan P Sahu of Odisha took bronze in 13.48 secs.

Other Key Results from Day One

In the women's triple jump, Tamil Nadu's Lasha Ilango claimed gold with a leap of 13.89m, improving the meet record and clearing the Asian Games qualification mark of 13.34m. Niharika Vashisht (Punjab) finished second at 13.22m and Mallala Anusha (Andhra Pradesh) third at 13.13m.

In the morning session, star distance runner Gulveer Singh of Uttar Pradesh won the men's 5,000m comfortably in 13:52.92 secs. In the men's 800m heats, more than ten athletes surpassed the Asian Games qualification mark of 1:48.80 seconds, signalling a deep pool of middle-distance talent heading into the Games.

With multiple athletes already through to Japan and the meet record books being rewritten across disciplines, day two at Kalinga Stadium is set to raise the bar even further.