Despite becoming the first Indian long jumper to qualify for the Diamond League final, Murali Sreeshankar has decided to skip the prestigious event, which will be held in Eugene next week, to prepare for the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games. The official ‘X’ (earlier called Twitter) handle of the Asian Games shared the information on Thursday morning. (More Sports News)
"India's long jumper M. Sreeshankar has decided to skip next week's Diamond League Final in Eugene and focus on Hangzhou Asian Games.
Sreeshankar is the first Indian long jumper to make the cut for Diamond League Final.
#Hangzhou #AsianGames #TeamIndia #Sreeshankar #diamondleague2023 #HangzhouAsianGames@WorldAthletics @SreeshankarM @WeAreTeamIndia," the Asian Games 2022 handle tweeted.
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Sreeshankar attributed his decision to the whirlwind schedule and the lack of recuperation time between the two events. “I have my event on September 29th (qualification round) and October 1 (final) at the Asian Games. If I go to the US travelling some 15 hours, compete for a day and then fly back to India and then travel again to China for the Asiad, that will be too much for my body,” the ace Indian long-jumper told The Hindu.
“Also the time difference...so I decided not to do the Diamond League Final.
There is a 12-day gap between the Diamond Final and the Asian Games. That will be too hectic and the Asiad long jump competition will also be a strong one too.
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“And with all the travelling, our training will not happen properly. And my body will not recover from the jet lag,” he added.
Sreeshankar had qualified for the Diamond League final following his performance in the Zurich Diamond League earlier in September. The 24-year-old Asian silver medallist ended up in fifth place in the men's long jump competition with a best jump of 7.99m. Though he stayed in contention for a top-three finish for more than half of the event, Sreeshankar could not elevate his performance when it mattered and slipped down the ranks in the second half.
Greece’s Miltidias Tentoglou won the event with an 8.20m jump, while Tamay Gayle bagged the second spot with his jump of 8.07m. The third place went to USA's Lawson Jarrion with a jump of 8.05m.
The Asian Games will take place in Hangzhou, China from September 23 to October 8.
Sreeshankar is one of the 65 players who have qualified for the Asiad in various disciplines of athletics.
The list of players also features world champion and Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra and his contemporary Kishore Kumar Jena in men's javelin throw, Annu Rani in the corresponding women's event, Tajinderpal Singh Toor in men's shot put, Jeswin Aldrin in men's long jump, and Jyothi Yarraji in women's 100m hurdles.
