Haryana’s rising javelin thrower Poonam delivered the performance of her young career at the ongoing Indian Athletics Series-9, clinching the women’s javelin throw title with a lifetime best effort of 52.16m.
The mark not only secured her victory but also saw her comfortably surpass the qualification standard for the 2026 World U20 Athletics Championships, earning the opportunity to compete against the world’s best junior throwers.
The breakthrough performance marks another important milestone in the development of one of India’s most promising young field athletes.
Poonam entered the competition as one of the favourites and lived up to expectations with a series highlighted by her winning throw of 52.16m.
Breaking the 52-metre barrier is a significant achievement at the junior level and demonstrates the steady progress she has made over the past season. More importantly, the throw came under competition conditions, showing her ability to perform when qualification and medals are on the line.
With the World U20 standard now secured, Poonam can focus on preparing for the global stage and further improving her performances in the months ahead.
Bangaon’s Emerging Javelin Factory
Poonam trains at Bangaon under coach Hanuman Singh, a centre that has increasingly gained recognition for producing talented young throwers.
Over the last few years, the academy has quietly built a reputation for nurturing athletes capable of competing at national and international levels. Poonam’s latest achievement is another testament to the quality of coaching and athlete development taking place there.
Her qualification for the World U20 Championships adds to the growing list of successes emerging from the training centre and highlights the important role grassroots academies continue to play in India’s athletics ecosystem.
Bhavya Pilania Secures Second Place
The strength of the Bangaon setup was further demonstrated by Bhavya Pilania, who also trains under coach Hanuman Singh.
Bhavya finished second in the competition with a best throw of 45.49m, ensuring a one-two finish for athletes from the same academy.
Having two athletes from the same training group occupy the top two positions reflects both the depth of talent and the effectiveness of the coaching environment at Bangaon.
With a lifetime best, a national-level title, and a World U20 qualification mark now to her name, Poonam has taken a major step forward in her athletics journey.
Seema and Nidhi secured the top two positions in the women’s discus throw at the ongoing Indian Athletics Series–9, with both athletes surpassing the qualification standard for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Seema won the competition with a best throw of 58.16m, while Nidhi finished second with 57.08m. The Commonwealth Games qualification standard for the event stands at 56.85m.
While Seema had already achieved the required mark earlier this season at the Federation Cup, her performance at the Indian Athletics Series–9 further reinforced her credentials ahead of the qualification cycle.
The bigger breakthrough came from Nidhi, whose 57.08m effort saw her clear the Commonwealth Games standard for the first time, putting herself in contention for selection for Glasgow 2026.
The competition also highlighted the improving standard of women’s discus throw in India, with both athletes comfortably exceeding the qualifying mark. Seema’s winning throw was more than a metre beyond the standard, while Nidhi crossed it by 23 centimetres.
With both athletes now having achieved the qualification requirement, attention will shift to upcoming competitions and the selection process as India begins shaping its athletics squad for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Women’s Discus Throw – Indian Athletics Series–9
- Seema – 58.16m
- Nidhi – 57.08m
CWG 2026 Qualification Standard: 56.85m
India’s rising throwing talent Amanat Kamboj delivered a composed and confident performance to clinch gold in the women’s discus throw at the U20 Asian Athletics Championships 2026, continuing India’s strong tradition in junior throwing events.
The young Indian thrower produced a best effort of 52.27m to finish on top of the podium ahead of China’s Chenyi Ma and Japan’s Koko Konda.
Final standings:
Amanat Kamboj (India) — 52.27m
Chenyi Ma (China) — 51.30m
Koko Konda (Japan) — 49.74m
For Amanat, the victory carried added significance.
At the previous edition of the U20 Asian Championships, she had narrowly missed out on gold and finished with silver. This time, she returned stronger and more assured, successfully upgrading that medal to the top step of the podium.
The result also underlines India’s growing depth in women’s throwing events, particularly at the junior level where athletes have increasingly started challenging traditional Asian powerhouses like China and Japan.
Amanat has been regarded as one of India’s promising young throwers for some time now. Hailing from Haryana — a state that continues to produce several of India’s best athletes in throwing disciplines — she has steadily progressed through the junior circuit over the last few seasons.
Her development has been marked by consistency rather than sudden breakthroughs.
Over the past year, Amanat has regularly featured among the leading junior discus throwers in India, showing improvement in both technique and competition temperament. Coaches have particularly praised her ability to remain calm during pressure situations, something she demonstrated once again in the final.
The winning mark of 52.27m may not yet place her among the very elite senior throwers globally, but at the U20 level it signals strong long-term potential.
Importantly, the gold medal also continues a broader positive phase for Indian athletics at age-group continental competitions. India has increasingly begun using the U18 and U20 Asian Championships as a pipeline for future senior international athletes.
Several Indian stars — including Olympic and World Championships medallists — first made their mark at junior continental events before transitioning to the senior circuit.
For Amanat, the challenge now will be translating junior success into senior-level consistency.
The transition is rarely easy in throwing events, where improvements often become more technical and incremental at the elite level. But performances like this suggest India may already have another promising discus thrower emerging through the system.
And after returning from silver to finally capture gold, Amanat Kamboj has shown she is learning how to win when expectations arrive.
Tanya Chaudhary hadn’t even planned to compete. Recovering from a fever, the expectation was simple: rest, reset, move on. Instead, she showed up—and took control of the women’s hammer throw at the Indian Athletics Series – 3.
Her series told the story of someone finding rhythm on the fly. 58.09m to open. Then 61.29m—the winning mark. Another over 60m at 60.70m. A miss. And finally, 59.27m to close.
First place, comfortably.
There was no perfect build-up, no ideal conditions. Just execution. Chaudhary crossed the 60m mark twice, a benchmark that matters, especially when the body isn’t fully there.
She later told Nnis Sports that competing wasn’t even part of the plan. But once inside the circle, that changed. The throws weren’t just enough—they were decisive.
