Jinson Johnson capped off a remarkable Asian Games by adding the 1500 metre gold to his silver medal in the 800 metres in Jakarta and Palembang on Thursday.
The Kerala runner ran a very tactical race, sticking to the coat-tails of the early pace setters Adnan Taes Agar of Iraq. The 27-year-old ran in third position till most of the race, choosing to make his move in the final 300 metres stretch, clocking a winning time of 3 minutes and 44.72 seconds.
It was an astute tactical race from the Perambra-born runner as his kick proved too strong for the rest of the field, as he finished clear of silver medallist Amir Moradi of Iran, finishing in 3:45.62. Johnson broke Bahadur Prasad’s 1995 national record in the 1500 metre at the National Inter-State Championships in Guwahati.
Gold medal winner in the 800, Manjit Singh adopted a similar strategy of wait and watch in the 1500. The 28-year-old hung back for most of the race, and started sprinting towards the finish line with 300 metres to go but Jinson’s final burst proved too much for him.
Manjit finished fourth, but his efforts in the 800 ensured that India won both the 1500 and 800 gold medals. With this, India have now won six gold medals in Jakarta and Palembang. Jinson won India’s first gold medal in the event since Sunita Rani at Busan in 2002.