News / Sports

Iranian sportsmen claim 3 gold medals in Asian Athletic Championships

Saturday, 08 July 2017 7:54 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 08 July 2017 7:55 AM ]

Iranian shot putter Ali Samari

Iranian sportsmen have featured dazzling performances at the 22nd edition of the Asian Athletics Championships in India, and snatched three gold medals at the continental sports event.

On Friday, Iranian shot putter Ali Samari drew the awe of spectators at the Kalinga Stadium in the eastern Indian city of Bhubaneswar, and snatched a gold medal for the Islamic Republic with a throw of 19.80 meters.

Indian Tajinder Pal Singh Toor won the silver medal, having recorded 19.77 meters.

The bronze went to Kazakhstan’s Ivan Ivanov, who threw 19.41 meters.

Furthermore, Hassan Taftian won Iran’s first ever title in the 100-meter running contest at the Asian Athletic Championships.

The 24-year-old Iranian sprinter clocked 10.25 seconds at the men’s final and stood on top of the podium.

Qatar’s Nigerian-born sprint athlete Femi Seun Ogunode and Yang Chun-Han from Chinese Taipei registered 10.26 and 10.31 seconds respectively to land in the second and third places.

In the men’s 1500-meter finals, Moslem Niadoost set the time of 3:48.53 minutes and earned the bronze medal.

Ajay Kumar Saroj, a representative from India, finished in the first spot and struck the yellow metal with 3:45.85 minutes.

Qatari athlete Jamal Hairane won the bronze medal. His personal best in the event was 3:46.90 minutes.

Earlier in the tournament, Iranian discus thrower and London 2012 Olympics silver medalist Ehsan Haddadi threw 64.54 meters and received the gold medal.

Malaysia's Muhammad Irfan took the silver with 60.96 meters. Vikas Gowda from India scooped the bronze with his best effort of 60.81 meters.

“After the 2016 Olympic Games, I underwent three surgeries. I am happy to have won the gold medal in the Asian Championships. I hope to clinch the gold medal in the World Championships,” Haddadi said.

The 2017 Asian Athletics Championships, which are the 22nd edition of the Asian Athletics Championships, opened in Bhubaneswar, India, on July 6 and will wrap up on July 9. Around 800 athletes from 45 countries have attended the event.

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