The spotlight will be on triple-jumper Renjith Maheshwari and 400m runner S.K. Mortaza at the third leg of the Asian Grand Prix here at the Nehru Stadium on Wednesday.
With countries like China, Japan and Korea sending their second string teams, the day-long event provides a great opportunity for the Indians to qualify for the Commonwealth Games to be held in New Delhi later this year. The Indian GP will be held concurrently.
Mortaza and Renjith are on a roll after dominating the previous two legs. Renjith reigned supreme with a 17m jump, defeating Kazakh Roman Valiyev in the second leg in Bengaluru.
Reigning Asian shot put champion Om Prakash Singh, who tossed the iron ball to a solid 19.80m to win gold, will be eager to continue his fine form here.
In the women’s event, P.T. Usha’s protégé Tinu Luka is expected to compete in 800m after missing the Bengaluru leg due to illness. The Kerala girl won silver in the first leg at Pune.
In the 4X100m relay, the Indian men quartet set a new national record of 39.23 secs,while overseas athletes from Kazakhsthan, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka and China have ruled the roost in other track and field events.
Events: Men: 100m, 400m, 800m, Shot Put, High Jump, Long Jump, Triple Jump and 110m Hurdles. Women: 100m, 400m, 800m, 100m hurdles, High Jump, Triple Jump, Shot Put and Discus.