Impressive Kamalpreet Kaur finishes 2nd in discus qualification to make finals, Seema Punia out
Tokyo: Discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur produced one of the best performances by an Indian in the Olympics, though in a qualifying round, as she made it to the finals of the ongoing Games after finishing second here on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Kaur, competing in qualification B, sent the discus to a distance of 64m in her third and final attempt to be one of the only two automatic qualifiers for the final round, the other being American Valarie Allman (66.42m).
The final will held on August 2.
The Indian ended ahead of defending gold-medallist Sandra Perkovic (63.75m) of Croatia and reigning world champion Yaime Perez (63.18) of Cuba. Perkovic qualified at third and Perez at seventh.
But veteran Seema Punia made an exit after finishing sixth in qualification A and 16th overall with a below-par best throw of 60.57m.
Kaur began with a 60.29m effort and then improved it to 63.97m before her third throw of 64m. Every competitor gets three throws. Those who touch 64m or at least 12 best performers in the two qualifying rounds advance to the final.
The Punjab athlete has been in impressive form this year as she breached the 65m mark twice recently.
She threw 65.06m during the Federation Cup in March to break the national record and become the first Indian to breach the 65m mark.
Then in June, she bettered her own national record with a throw of 66.59m during the Indian Grand Prix-4 to sit at world number six. Season leader Jorinde van Klinken of Netherlands failed to make the final round cut with a modest throw of 61.15m.
She has a season's best of 70.22m while Allman is second best this year at 70.01m.
Punia, who had booked a last minute Olympics berth, was way below her season and personal best marks. She fouled her first throw and had 60.57m and 58.93m in her next two attempts to make an exit from what would be her last Olympics.
The 38-year-old Haryana athlete had made it to the Olympics on the day of qualification deadline with a throw of 63.72m during the National Inter-State Championships in Patiala on June 29.
She has a personal best of 64.84m, a performance she produced way back in 2004.
She returned to action only this season after appearing for the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta where she won a bronze.
Punia has been training outside the national camp, mostly in Russia and neighbouring countries. She had come to Tokyo with her personal coach Alexander Sinitsyn who was with her in Jakarta.
It was the veteran discus thrower's fourth Olympics. She has never qualified for the final round.
She made her Olympic debut in 2004 in Athens where she had a best throw of 60.64m. In 2012 and 2016 Olympics, she had disappointing performances of 61.91m and 57.58m.
Punia has won laurels for the country in the Commonwealth and Asian Games. She has won a medal each in all four CWGs since 2006 -- three silver and one bronze in all.
She also won a gold and a bronze in the 2014 and 2018 Asian Games respectively.
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2nd phase of Bengal poll: 39.97 per cent polling till 11 am amid sporadic violence
Kolkata (PTI): Nearly 40 per cent of the 3.21 crore electors voted till 11 am of the second phase of polling in West Bengal amid sporadic violence, while tension gripped the Bhabanipur seat briefly as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari took swipes at one another in the same booth area.
Voters queued up from 7 am outside booths in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas and Purba Bardhaman districts, which form Bengal's electoral and political core.
Of the total electorate eligible to vote in this phase, 1.57 crore are women, and 792 are third-gender.
Till 11 am, West Bengal recorded 39.97 per cent polling with Purba Bardhaman registering the highest turnout at 44.50 per cent, followed by Hooghly at 43.12 per cent and Nadia at 40.34 per cent.
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Howrah recorded 39.45 per cent polling, while North 24 Parganas registered 38.43 per cent. Kolkata North and Kolkata South recorded 38.39 per cent and 36.78 per cent turnout, respectively.
South 24 Parganas, a politically crucial district witnessing several high-profile contests, recorded 37.9 per cent voting.
The first phase of polls in 152 Assembly seats of West Bengal on April 23 also recorded more than 41 per cent polling till 11 am.
"Polling is underway peacefully, barring some minor incidents in certain areas. We have sought reports from the officials concerned," a poll panel official said.
The early-morning convergence of Banerjee and Adhikari at the same booth area in Chakraberia turned Bhabanipur -- the chief minister's electoral bastion -- into the centrepiece of the day, reinforcing the symbolic weight of their prestige battle seen as a rematch of Nandigram, where the BJP leader had defeated her in 2021.
Banerjee was already seated outside the booth after receiving complaints of alleged intimidation of local TMC leaders when Adhikari arrived there amid heavy deployment of central forces.
Stepping out of his car, Adhikari declared, "I will not allow any hooliganism", while Banerjee accused the BJP of trying to "rig" the election using central forces, police observers and election officials.
"BJP wants to rig this election. Polls in Bengal are usually peaceful. Is there goonda raj here?" Banerjee told reporters, alleging CRPF personnel had visited the homes of TMC leaders late Tuesday night and unleashed terror in the area.
She alleged that election observers were acting at the BJP's behest and claimed TMC workers were being selectively targeted across districts.
Adhikari dismissed the charges as signs of "frustration", claiming Banerjee had realised that "not a single vote" was coming her way.
Banerjee, who usually steps out of her Kalighat residence late in the day to cast her vote at Mitra Institution School, broke convention and hit the ground before 8 am, moving through Chetla, Padmapukur and Chakraberia, underlining the stakes attached to Bhabanipur and the wider battle for south Bengal.
Reports of violence, vandalism and tension surfaced from several districts.
In Nadia district's Chapra, a BJP polling agent was allegedly assaulted inside a booth during a mock poll. The BJP accused TMC supporters of attacking its agent, while the ruling party denied the charge. In Shantipur, a BJP camp office was found vandalised.
In South 24 Pargana's Bhangar, the ISF alleged that its polling agents were prevented from entering booths.
Howrah's Bally constituency saw tension at a booth in Liluah after an EVM malfunction delayed voting, prompting central forces to lathi-charge agitated voters. Two people were arrested in the matter.
Police and RAF personnel were also seen chasing away crowds near a booth in Amdanga following complaints of unlawful gathering by bike-borne supporters.
In Panihati, BJP candidate Ratna Debnath, the mother of the RG Kar victim, faced protests and her car was allegedly stopped by TMC workers, while in Jagaddal, the recovery of a firearm near a polling booth triggered tension before police and central forces restored order.
BJP candidate from Basanti assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas, Bikash Sardar, on Wednesday, alleged that "200-250 TMC goons" attacked his car and assaulted his driver when he was visiting polling booths in the constituency.
The TMC did not immediately respond to the allegations.
Unlike the first phase, where the BJP sought to defend its north Bengal gains, the final round has shifted the battle squarely to the TMC's strongest belt.
In 2021, the ruling party had won 123 of these 142 seats, leaving just 18 for the BJP and one for the ISF. For the BJP, breaching this southern fortress remains critical if it hopes to mount a serious challenge for power in the state.
