‘Heartiest congratulations’: Nita Ambani hails Neeraj Chopra and other Indian athletes

New Delhi, Aug 28 (IANS) Reliance Foundation chairperson and founder Nita Ambani has hailed Neeraj Chopra and other Indian athletes for their stunning performances at the World championships in Budapest.

“Heartiest congratulations to Neeraj Chopra for winning India’s first ever gold medal at the World Athletics Championships. It is a momentous day for India as the tricolour soared high on the world athletics stage.

“Congratulations also to D P Manu, Parul Chaudhary, Jeswin Aldrin, our men’s relay team, and our very own Reliance Foundation athlete Kishore Jena for their outstanding performances in making India proud in the global arena. We, at Reliance Foundation, are proud to partner with the Athletics Federation of India and play our part in the journey of Indian athletes from grassroots to glory!” said Nita M Ambani in a statement.

Neeraj Chopra won a historic maiden gold medal for India in the World Athletics Championships on Sunday, claiming the gold medal in the men’s javelin throw competition here.

Chopra, who has been bothered by an injury in the last few months, killed the competition in the Hungarian capital with a massive throw of 88.17 in his second turn,

The two other Indians in the fray too did their best but could not finish on the podium — Kishore Kumar Jena, who had to overcome visa problems to reach Budapest, finished fifth with a personal best throw of 84.77 while D.P. Manu finished sixth with 84.14.

But India had the most hopes from Neeraj Chopra and the 25-year-old from Haryana did not disappoint as he came up with a superb throw on his second turn and secured his first World Championship gold.

Meanwhile, India’s Parul Chaudhary and the men’s 4x400m relay team set new benchmarks at the Championships, coming up with their best performances.

Long-distance runner Parul Chaudhary produced a brilliant effort to set a new national record in the women’s 3000m steeplechase.

Parul clocked 9 minutes 15.51 seconds on Sunday to finish 11th overall. She improved on the national record of 9:19.76 held by Lalita Babar of Maharashtra, who set it in the Rio Olympics in 2016.

With her timing of 9:16.51, Parul also qualified for the Paris Olympic Games next year.

The Indian men’s 4x400m relay team of Muhammad Anas Yahiya, Amoj Jacob, Muhammad Ajmal and Rajesh Ramesh came with a lion-hearted effort as it dipped under three minutes once again, finishing fifth overall in 2 minutes 59.92 seconds.

The quartet, which had gone neck-and-neck with the mighty United States in the semifinal heat and finished second in 2:29.05, could not manage to improve on that effort in the final.

But that would not have mattered as the United States team of Quincy Hall, Vernon Norwood, Justin Robinson and Rai Benjamin clocked a world-leading 2:57.31 to win the gold medal. Norwood and Rai Benjamin (anchor) came up with brilliant efforts of 4.01 and 44.02 respectively that really sealed the gold medal for them.