Athletes like Ansi Sujan, Vishal TK and Animesh Kajoor, who fell well short of the Commonwealth Games qualifying mark set by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) during the National Senior Athletics Federation meet in Ranchi (May 22-25), will get another chance to compete in the Indian League at Ludhi Alegana on May 22-25.Ensi missed the mark by 9cm in the women’s long jump, Vishal fell short by 0.02s in the men’s 400m, while Animesh was just 0.03s off the qualifying standard in the men’s 200m.It is also a huge occasion, especially for the men’s javelin throwers, after none managed to cross the qualifying mark of 82.61m on the final day in Ranchi.AFI Selection Committee Chairman Adil Samriwala said, “AFI is providing yet another opportunity to eligible athletes to achieve CWG eligibility criteria in their respective events.”“This is because several athletes fell short of the AFI eligibility criteria at the recently concluded 29th National Senior Athletics Federation competition in Ranchi.”However, there is a warning! Performances in the Indian Athletics Series in Ludhiana will be considered for selection only after the athletes have participated in the four-day meet in Ranchi.According to Samariwala, the players had written to the AFI that they were unable to perform at their best due to unfavorable weather conditions, especially on the final day.“After due deliberation, the members of the AFI Selection Committee unanimously agreed to give athletes another platform to earn the Mark of Merit,” the vice-president of World Athletics said in a release.While the long-distance runners struggled in the heat in the morning, strong winds on the final evening may have hampered performances in many events.AFI’s CWG selection guidelines will remain unchanged. “Athletes will be given a chance in the events in which they were close to the qualifying marks in Ranchi,” he added.Also among those who easily missed the mark was Krishna Jaishankar. She won the women’s shot put with a throw of 17.35m, just 27cm short of the CWG mark of 17.62m. He also took bronze in the discus (55.00m) and is likely to have another shot, with the qualification standard set at 56.85m.Players who have already secured the CWG qualification number in Ranchi will remain eligible. “However, if they want to participate in Ludhiana, they can participate,” Samariwala said.The decision is likely to come as a relief to many athletes, and Tejaswan Shankar, after winning the gold medal in Ranchi, praised the athlete-friendly move.
