Record holder Anushka wants javelin-like status for hammer throw

A national record holder at just 18, Uttar Pradesh athlete Anushka Yadav has a simple wish — to make the hammer throw match the popularity of javelin, which has a massive fan following in the country due to the exploits of two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra.

Anushka smashed the women’s hammer throw national record with an effort of 67.02m on an eventful opening day of the National Inter-State Championships here on Wednesday. She bettered the nine-year-old previous national record of 65.25m set in 2017 by Sarita Singh. “Not many people know hammer throw in India, but everybody knows javelin throw. I want people to know hammer throw just like javelin throw,” Anushka, who hails from a farming family at Baleni village in Baghpat district of Uttar Pradesh, said after her feat. “I am looking for gold in the upcoming Asian Games and hoping to cross the 70m mark in the near future,” she said when asked about her target this year.

Anushka made an improvement of more than four metres from her previous personal best of 62.89m, which she came up with on the way to winning gold in the National Games last year.

She has a chance of winning a medal at the Asian Games in Japan in September-October. She breached the Asian Games qualifying mark of 61.72m set by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).