Indian Open Throws 2026: Big Throws Mark Season Opener In Patiala

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The Indian Open Throws 2026, held in Patiala on March 7-8, marked the season opener for India's top throwers. Several leading names in Indian athletics competed, and the meet delivered multiple personal bests, near records and breakthrough performances.

Damneet Singh Nearly Breaks National Record

One of the biggest performances came in the men's hammer throw, where Damneet Singh produced a sensational series.

The Punjab thrower smashed his personal best with 70.64m on his second attempt, missing the Indian national record of 70.73m set by Neeraj Kumar in 2016 by just 9 cm.

Damneet proved it was no fluke. He followed it with 70.21m in his third attempt and 70.04m in his fifth, crossing the 70m mark three times in the competition. It was also the first time he breached 70m in the senior circuit.

Toor Returns To 20m Club

In the men's shot put, Tajinderpal Singh Toor won gold with a throw of 20.51m.

It was only his second outdoor 20m+ throw in the last two and a half years. Earlier this season, Toor had also finished second at the Asian Indoor Championships with 20.05m.

However, Samardeep Gill, who impressed last year, had a disappointing outing and finished 11th with 16.88m, continuing a difficult start to his 2026 season.

Sanjana Stuns Field In Women's Javelin

The women's javelin throw produced a surprise result as Sanjana Chaudhary won gold with 54.20m, defeating experienced throwers Deepika and Jyoti.

Tanya Chaudhary Win Women's Hammer Throw

In the women's hammer throw, Tanya Chaudhary secured gold with 61.09m.

Earlier this year, she had thrown 65.60m at the All India Inter-University Championships, a mark better than the current national record of 65.25m by Sarita Singh, although it cannot be officially recognised as the meet was not World Athletics certified.

DAY 2: LOHAKARE BREAKS 80M BARRIER

The biggest highlight of Day 2 came in the men's javelin throw.

Shivam Lohakare announced himself in style by throwing a massive 81.08m on his very first attempt to win gold.

It was the first 80m throw by an Indian in 2026, making Lohakare only the fourth javelin thrower in the world this year to cross the 80m mark. The throw also helped him achieve the Asian Games qualification standard.

Kirpal Singh Registers Best Discus Throw In 3 Years

In the men's discus throw, Kirpal Singh won gold with 58.89m, the best mark by an Indian in the last three years.

Interestingly, the previous better mark was also by Kirpal himself when he threw 61.83m in 2022.

Ujjawal Breaks National Record

In the U-20 men's discus throw, Ujjawal Chaudhary broke his own national record with a throw of 60.03m, surpassing his previous record of 59.51m set last year in Prayagraj.

Nischay Shines Again

After winning U-18 shot put gold with 19.78m on Day 1, Nishchay returned on Day 2 to win U-18 discus gold with a personal best of 63.90m.

He missed the national record of 64.09m by just 19 cm, completing an outstanding meet.

Haryana's "Little Finland" Produces Another Champion

In the U-20 women's javelin, Poonam won gold with 49.50m, followed by Bhavya Pilania (46.77m) and Shivani (40.45m).

Interestingly, both Poonam and Bhavya come from Bangaon in Haryana, a village popularly known as the "Little Finland" of Indian javelin, and both are coached by Hanuman.