News / Sports

Iranians earn three medals in Asian Athletics Championships

Sunday, 21 February 2016 12:40 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 22 February 2016 11:56 AM ]

Iranian sprinters Hassan Taftian (C) and Reza Ghasemi (L) pose with their medals along with Eric Shauwn from the Philippines (R) at Aspire Dome in the Qatari capital city of Doha, February 20, 2016.

Iranian athletes have claimed three medals, including one gold, in the 7th edition of the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships in Qatar.

On Friday, Iran’s 22-year-old sprinter Hassan Taftian and Reza Ghasemi, 28, clocked 6.56 and 6.66 seconds respectively in the tournament’s prestigious 100-meter race at Aspire Dome in the Qatari capital city of Doha, to land in the first and second positions.

Eric Shauwn from the Philippines clinched the bronze medal with 6.70 seconds.

Taftian also improved his 60-meter career best by 0.09.

“I am so excited I had never run faster before,” the gold medalist at the 2012 Asian Junior Athletics Championships in Sri Lanka said.

He described his achievement as an important step toward his goal of reaching the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games final later this year.

In the women’s pentathlon, Sepideh Tavakoli racked up 3,828 points to receive the silver medal. The gold medal went to a contestant from Uzbekistan with 4,224 points, and Japan’s representative scored 3,637 points to get the bronze.

The 7th edition of Asian Indoor Athletics Championships started in Doha, Qatar, on February 19, and wrapped up on February 21, 2016.

The championships attracted 300 athletes from 36 countries, including India, Japan, Sri Lanka, Syria and Uzbekistan.

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