Chandigarh, March 28 India's men's 4x400m and mixed 4x100m relay teams took a major step towards qualifying for the World Athletics Relays in Botswana in May, delivering outstanding performances at the International Invitation Relay Competition here on Saturday.
The men's 4x400m team, featuring Manu TS, Amoj Jacob, D Chaudhary, and Rajesh Ramesh, secured gold with a time of 3:01.43 seconds. This performance significantly strengthens their chances of qualifying for the World Athletics Relays, scheduled for May 2–3 in Gaborone, Botswana.
In the mixed 4x100m relay, the National B team stole the show by breaking the national record. The quartet clocked 42.30 seconds, erasing the previous mark of 43.44 seconds set by Tamil Nadu in 2025.
The India A team followed closely in second at 42.34 seconds, while the Maldives took third.
Chief athletics coach Radhakrishnan Nair praised the depth of the field, noting that both Indian teams performed "exceptionally well."
However, the day was marked by "disappointment" for the men's 4x100m relay team. A disqualification in the heats ended their hopes of qualifying for the World Relays. National record holder Animesh Kujur expressed his disappointment, noting that the Chandigarh meet was the final opportunity to improve their ranking before the April 5 deadline.
The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) fielded two teams in the mixed 4x100m relay, and members of both teams performed exceptionally well, chief athletics coach Radhakrishnan Nair said.
However, India's international sprinter and national record holder, Animesh Kujur, was disappointed at missing a golden opportunity to qualify for the flight to Botswana.
"The competition in Chandigarh was the last chance for the 4x100m relay squad to improve their world ranking before the April 5 deadline, but we missed it," Kujur, a member of the national 4x100m relay team, said.
The national mixed 4x400m relay and women's 4x100m relay teams are also strong contenders to win tickets to the World Athletics Relays.
The national women's 4x100m relay clocked 43.86 seconds at the 2025 Gumi Asian Athletics Championships. Their current world ranking is 23.
The national 4x400m mixed relay team's current world ranking of 22 is based on the 3:14.81 performance at the World Relays in China.
