Middle distance runner Sudha Singh clinched India’s fifth silver medal from the athletics track after finishing behind Bahrain’s Winfred Yavi in the women’s 3000m steeplechase at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.
Sudha Singh, who had won the gold medal when the event was introduced in the 2010 Asian Games, began strong but was pipped first at the 1000m mark by Sri Lankan Uda Rathnayake. However, she faded away soon after and it was a battle between Sudha and Yavi from thereafter.
Yavi maintained the lead through out after that and finished with a flourish to clock a timing of 9:36.52 to clinch the gold while Sudha managed a timing of 9:40.03. The bronze medal went to Vietnam’s Thi Oanh Nguyen with a timing of 9:43.83.
In 2014, Sudha had finished fourth despite registering a personal best time of 9:35.64. The race on Monday was far slower and the 32-year-old kept pace with the race leader and ensured that she bagged her second Asian Games medal in the event.
The other Indian in fray, Chinta finished 11th with a time of 10:26.21.
In the men’s 3000m steeplechase event, Shankar Lal Swami finished eighth with a time of 8:43.43. Iran’s Hossein Keyhani bagged the gold with a Games Record of 8:22.79 while Yaser Bagharab of Qatar and Kazuya Shiojiri of Japan won the silver and bronze respectively.