India’s challenge at the World Indoor Games in Birmingham came to a tame end late on Saturday as their sole representative, Siddhanth Thingalaya finished sixth in the heat three of 60-metre hurdles, and a disappointing 31 out of 37 competitors. The 27-year-old’s timing of 7.93 seconds was much slower than his national record feat, which took him only 7.7 seconds.
There were expectations surrounding Thingalaya going into the games following his aforementioned national record. Thingalaya, who trains in California, also holds the national record for 110-metre hurdles with a timing of 13.48 seconds.
Both the records came in American shores: His 60-metre record was registered during the UW Preview meet in Seattle last year. His 110-metre record came during the Altis Invitational meet, also in the United States in 2017. Thingalaya could have not made it to England as he had received his visa only on the day of his travel.