Indian sprinters Animesh Kujur and Gurindervir Singh advanced to the men’s 100m semifinals at the 2026 Asian Games after finishing third and second, respectively, in their opening-round heats on Thursday.
Kujur clocked 10.36 seconds to finish third in his heat and secure his place in the semifinals. Thailand’s Puripol Boonson won the heat in 9.95 seconds, while China’s Zeng Keli finished second in 10.22 seconds.
Kujur registered a reaction time of 0.140 seconds and remained inside the qualification spots to progress to the next round.
Gurindervir, meanwhile, finished second in Heat 4 with a time of 10.38 seconds. Oman’s Malham Al Balushi won the heat in 10.29 seconds, while Iran’s Hassan Taftian finished third in 10.46 seconds.
Gurindervir recorded a reaction time of 0.142 seconds and finished 0.09 seconds behind the heat winner. His second-place finish ensured his qualification for the semifinals, giving India two representatives in the men’s 100m event.
The two sprinters will now look to secure places in the final as India’s athletics campaign continues at the continental showpiece.
Earlier, Indian boxer Sakshi Chaudhary suffered a 3-2 defeat to Kazakhstan’s Balkibekova in the women’s 51kg bout, while Parveen advanced to the quarterfinals after Tajikistan’s Malika Nozimova conceded a walkover.
Parveen progressed to the last eight without entering the ring and will next face Uzbekistan’s Navbakhor Khamidova in the quarterfinal.
(ANI Inputs)
