India Dominates 4th South Asian Senior Athletics Championships 2025 with 20 Gold Medals and a Total Tally of 58 Medals

Rakesh Thapliyal

Ranchi:India reaffirmed its regional athletic dominance by emerging as the overall champion at the 4th South Asian Senior Athletics Championships 2025, held from 24th to 26th October at Birsa Munda Stadium, Ranchi.

The Indian contingent topped the medal tally with 20 gold medals and an overall total of 58 medals, followed by Sri Lanka, which delivered an impressive performance with 16 golds and a total of 40 medals. Nepal secured the third position with 2 silver and 4 bronze medals, while Bangladesh (3 bronze) and Maldives (1 bronze) finished fourth and fifth respectively. Bhutan concluded the championship without a medal.

 

The final day of the championships witnessed several outstanding performances and new meet records across multiple events:

Men’s 400m Hurdles: India’s Ruchit Mori clinched gold with a new meet record time of 50.10 seconds, followed by Kuda Liyanage Ayoma (Sri Lanka) and Karna Bag (India).

Women’s 400m Hurdles: Sri Lanka’s K.H. Arachchige Dasun set a new meet record of 58.66 seconds, securing gold, ahead of Aral Loku (Sri Lanka) and Olimba Steffi (India).

Men’s Javelin Throw: Pathirage Rumes (Sri Lanka) took gold with a throw of 84.29m, followed by Ranasinghe Jagat (Sri Lanka) and Uttam Patil (India).

Men’s Long Jump: India’s Mohd Sazid claimed gold with a 7.68m jump, followed by Unagolla Yeswesmi (Sri Lanka) and Sarun Payasingh (India).

Women’s High Jump: Reet Rathore (India) secured gold with a jump of 1.76m, followed by Gamage Ranindi (Sri Lanka) and Supriya (India).

Women’s Javelin Throw: Sri Lanka’s Hatarabage Leka Nadeeka created a new meet record with a throw of 60.14m, surpassing the previous mark of 51.70m (2008). India’s Karishma Sanil and Deepika won silver and bronze respectively.

Men’s 10,000m: Abhishek (India) won gold with a time of 30:29.46, followed by Rajan Rokaya (Nepal) and Prince Kumar (India).

Men’s Hammer Throw: India’s Damneet Singh won gold with a 66.99m throw, followed by Ashish Jakhar (India) and K.K. Damith Mad Dhar (Sri Lanka).

Women’s 800m: Amandeep Kaur (India) took gold in 2:04.66, followed by Kodithuwakku Takshi (Sri Lanka) and Thota Sankeertana (India).

Men’s 800m: D.M. Harsha S. Karuna (Sri Lanka) won gold in 1:51.96, with Som Bahadur Kumal (Nepal) and Mogali Venkatram Reddy (India) following.

Women’s 200m: Sri Lanka’s Mohammad Yamick Fatima clocked 23.58s to win gold, while India’s Sakshi Chavan and Neeru Pathak secured silver and bronze.

Men’s 4x400m Relay: Sri Lanka took gold with 3:05.12, narrowly ahead of India (3:05.38) and Bangladesh (3:15.00).

Women’s 4x400m Relay: India’s women’s team won gold with a time of 3:34.70, followed by Sri Lanka (3:35.71) and Bangladesh (3:55.63).

The 4th South Asian Senior Athletics Championships 2025 concluded successfully in Ranchi with enthusiastic participation from all South Asian nations. The event showcased exceptional athletic talent, new regional records, and strengthened the spirit of sportsmanship and cooperation across the region.

A Record-Breaking Extravaganza

Highlights of the record-breaking performances include:

Men’s Shot Put: India’s Samardeep Gill smashed S. Kumar’s 2008 record of 17.71m in Kochi with an impressive throw of 19.59m.

Women’s 100m Run: Sri Lanka’s Mohammad Yamick set a new record of 11.53s, surpassing D. Priyadarshani’s 11.74s mark from 2008.

Women’s 5000m Run: Sanjana Singh clocked 15:38.70, breaking P. Sreedharan’s 16:08.09 record from Kochi 2008.

Men’s 110m Hurdles: India’s Manav R set a blazing 13.78s, bettering the 1998 Colombo record of 14.21s.

Women’s 100m Hurdles: India’s Nandhini K improved the 1998 Colombo record from 13.84s to 13.56s.

Men’s High Jump: India’s Kirpal Singh soared past Harishankar Roy’s 2.15m mark from 2008.

Men’s 400m Hurdles: Ruchit Mori claimed gold with a meet record of 50.10s, surpassing the previous 50.72s.

Women’s 400m Hurdles: Sri Lanka’s Arachchige Dasun set a new record of 58.66s, breaking the previous 59.35s.

Men’s Javelin Throw: Pathirage Rumes (Sri Lanka) smashed J. Singh’s 75.37m record from 1998 with 84.29m.

Women’s Javelin Throw: Hatarabage Leka (Sri Lanka) recorded 60.14m, bettering BL Nadeeka’s 51.70m.

Mixed & Team Relays:

India’s women set a new 4x400m relay record of 3:34.70.

Sri Lanka’s men improved the 4x400m record to 3:05.12.

Sri Lankan men and women also broke the 4x100m relay records with 39.99s and 44.70s, respectively.

Women’s 10000m: W.A. MethMi Rasa Wijes (Sri Lanka) clocked 34:39.95, bettering the 1998 record of 38:04.48.

Women’s 200m: Mohammad Yamick (Sri Lanka) set a new record of 23.58s, surpassing PT Usha’s 1997 record of 23.90s.

This championship showcased the incredible talent and determination of athletes from India, Sri Lanka, and other South Asian nations, setting a new benchmark for future editions.