Indian athlete Parul Chaudhary finished in the 11th position in the 3000 metres steeplechase final at the World Athletics Championships 2023 in Budapest, Hungary, setting a national record and securing her qualification for the Paris Olympics 2024.While her performance may not have secured a medal, Paruls achievement is noteworthy as she shattered the national record with a time of 9:15.31. She broke Lalita Babars record of 9:19.76 set during the 2016 Rio Olympics.Parul wins hearts with her performance at #World #Athletics Championships🤩The NCOE @SAI_Bengaluru Camper unfolds a new chapter as she breaks the National Record & gives her PB time of 9:15.31s in Womens Steeplechase Event. She finished 1⃣1⃣th but with her time Qualified… pic.twitter.com/icsJ6Hblue— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) August 27, 2023Parul also finished comfortably under the 9:23.00s mark which ensured her automatic qualification mark for next years Summer Olympic Games in Paris.Earlier during the preliminary round, Parul demonstrated her growing prowess by surpassing her personal best by five seconds (9.29.51), finishing in fifth place and securing a spot in the final event.The steeplechase gold was clinched by Bruneis Winfred Mutile Yavi with a time of 8:54.29, followed by Kenyas Beatrice Chepkoech and Faith Cherotich, who secured silver and bronze with times of 8:58.98 and 9:00.69, respectively.Although Parul briefly led the steeplechase at the 200m split, she faced challenges and ultimately secured the 11th position. However, she demonstrated resilience in the latter part of the race, moving up two spots in the final 100m split.Paruls journey into athletics began on her fathers recommendation. Hailing from the village of Iklauta near Meerut in western Uttar Pradesh, she steadily climbed the ranks, becoming part of the national camp in 2016. Her first national title in the 5000m was earned in 2019 at the age of 24.Indian mens team finished fifth in 4x400m relay at World Athletics ChampionshipsIn a separate event, the Indian mens 4×400 metres relay team competed in the relay race final at the World Athletics Championships. The team, consisting of Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Amoj Jacob, Muhammed Ajmal, and Rajesh Ramesh, marked the clock at 2:59.92.While the Indian team secured the fifth position, the gold medal was secured by the USA team, followed by France and Great Britain, who claimed silver and bronze, respectively.
