World Athletics Championships Oregon 22: Indian steeplechaser Avinash Sable finishes 11th in final

Bengaluru, July 19: India's Avinash Sable on Tuesday (July 18) finished a disappointing 11th in the men's 3000m steeplechase final of the World Athletics Championships 2022 at the Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

Sable, who qualified for the finals by finishing third in his heats and seventh overall, clocked 8:31.75s competing in a strong field of 15 in the final in which Morrocco's Olympic champion Soufaine El Bakkali clinched gold, while Ethiopian Lamecha Girma took silver and Conseslus Kipruto of Kenya won bronze.

The 27-year-old from Maharashtra has been one of the most improved Indian athletes in recent times. He clocked 8:18.75 in his heat to qualify for the final and is also the national record holder in men's 3000m steeplechase with a timing of 8:12.48 - which he set at the Meeting International Mohamed VI in Rabat, finishing fifth.

However, his timing of 8 minutes and 31.75 seconds was not enough to earn him a place on the podium. The reigning Olympic champion El Bakkali finished top with a timing of 8:25.13, Girma finished second with a timing of 8:26.01 and 2019 World Champion Kipruto clocked 8:27.92.

This was Sable's second consecutive final appearance at the World Championships. He had finished 13th in the last edition of the championships in Doha in 2019 with the then national record time of 8:21.37.

Earlier, India's history-making men's long jumper Murali Sreeshankar finished 7th in the final with the best distance of 8.00 metres. Sreeshankar was the first Indian to qualify for the men's long jump final in World Athletics Championships.

Sreeshankar's compatriots Jeswin Aldrin and Muhammed Anees Yahiya did not reach the long jump final, while shot putter Takinderpal Singh Toor did not compete in the qualification round due to injury. Also, women's 3000m steeplechaser Parul Yadav failed to qualify for finals. Meanwhile, women's 200m sprinter S Dhanalakshmi was forced to miss the event due to visa issues.