Federation Cup 2025: Pranav Pramod Gurav And Sachin Yadav Steal The Spotlight On Day 1

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New Delhi, Apr 22: The 2025 Federation Cup kicked off in Kochi, Kerala, on Monday (April 21) with thrilling performances that captivated the crowd.

In a sensational turn of events, Railways' Pranav Pramod triumphed over national record holder Gurindervir Singh, 200m sensation Animesh Kujur, and former national record holder Manikanta Hoblidhar to clinch the men's 100m title.

The morning session saw Sawan Barwal dominate the 10,000m, while the evening session witnessed Pranav Pramod Gurav, Sachin Yadav, and Lili Das steal the spotlight with remarkable victories.

FROM AN UNDERDOG TO A CHAMPION

Pranav Pramod, the National Games 2025 silver medalist, delivered the race of his life, clinching the gold in the men's 100m final with a personal best of 10.28s. He outpaced top contenders such as Gurindervir Singh, Animesh Kujur, Manikanta Hoblidhar, and Amlan Borgohain.

Meanwhile, former national record holder Amiya Mallick, 2024 National Open Athletics Championships winner Lalu Prasad Bhoi, and U-20 100m champion Dondapati Jayaram failed to qualify for the 100m finals.

SACHIN YADAV DOMINATES AGAIN

People had already anticipated that Sachin Yadav would win this competition, but they didn't know by what a huge margin he would win. The National Games 2025 champion won gold comfortably with his best throw of 83.86m in the men's Javelin final.

Sachin kicked off the 2025 season in spectacular fashion, clinching gold with a personal best throw of 84.39m. Unfortunately, he later faced an ankle injury. After recovering, Sachin made a comeback, securing second place at the Indian Open Athletics Meet with a throw of 70.62m.

Today, he put on an outstanding performance, achieving a throw of 83.86m. A remarkable recovery post-injury bouncing back like this is truly impressive.

Yashvir Singh secured second place with his impressive throw of 80.85m, while 2024 Inter-State Athletics Championships gold medalist Sahil Silwal took third with a throw of 77.84m. Asian Games 2022 silver medalist continued to struggle, finishing fourth with 77.82m. Meanwhile, 2025 Indian Open Throws champion Rohit Yadav faced a tough outing, settling for seventh place with a throw of 76.37m.

LILI DAS' GOOD FORM CONTINUES

Uttarakhand's Lili Das clinched the gold medal in the women's 1500m with a personal best of 4:10.88, surpassing the Asian Athletics Championships qualification mark of 4:15.00.

Haryana's Pooja also met the Asian Championships qualification standard, finishing second with a time of 4:12.56. Despite her personal best of 4:09.52, Pooja had skipped the 1500m last year.

Lili Das kicked off her 2025 season with an impressive performance at the Indian Open Athletics Meet in Chennai, securing first place in the 1500m with a time of 4:13.74. Although national record holder KM Deeksha (due to injury) and Asian Games medalist Harmilan Bains (also injured) did not participate in the competition, Lili Das' performance remains commendable.

HAT-TRICK OF GOLDS BY YOONUS SHAH

Even though the spotlight on Day 1 of the Federation Cup was on Pranav Pramod Gurav and Sachin Yadav, Yoonus Shah was not far behind with a performance that spoke volumes.

Yoonus clinched the gold medal in the men's 1500m final, clocking a personal best of 3:41.93 not only securing the top podium spot but also breaching the qualification mark for the Asian Athletics Championships. His dominance rolls on into 2025, stronger than ever.

This was his third straight gold medal of the 2025 season. First, he won gold at the National Games in Uttarakhand with a time of 3:46.48, and after that, he finished first at the Indian Open Athletics Meet in Chennai with a time of 3:45.11.

DAY 2 - MORE FINALS, MORE MEDALS, MORE RECORDS

The afternoon session will witness a thrilling men's pole vault final featuring national record holder Dev Meena and former record holder Siva S in a high-stakes face-off. Right after that, the men's high jump final will take center stage with Paris Olympian Sarvesh Kushare looking to soar to new heights.

The men's long jump final is also on the cards, where Jeswin Aldrin, the national record holder, returns to chase the elusive 8m mark-something he missed last year and hasn't touched this year either. Will tomorrow be his leap of redemption?

On the track, the women's 100m hurdles final will be a battle of speed and nerves as India's sprint queen Jyothi Yarraji lines up against a determined Nithya Ramraj. In the men's 110m hurdles final, all eyes will be on national record holder Tejas Shirse-can he seal his spot for the Asian Championships?

And closing the day in style, the men's 400m final will see a power-packed clash between Amoj Jacob, Jay Kumar, and Rince Joseph. In the women's 400m, Rupal Chaudhary, Vithya Ramraj, Devyaniba Zala, and Subha Venkatesan are set to light up the track in a thrilling showdown.