C'wealth Youth Games: Lifter Lather, javelin thrower Hadish give India gold

Indians continued their strong show at the fifth Commonwealth Youth Games, winning five medals, including two gold, on the second day of competition in Apia, Samoa, on Tuesday.

Weightlifter Deepak Lather (boys’ 62kg category) and javelin thrower Mohd Hadish won a gold each in their respective events, while Jisna Mathew won a silver in the girls’ 400 metres.

Chandan Bauri (boys’ 400m) and Velavan Senthilkumar (boys’ squash singles) won a bronze each to swell India's medal haul on the second day.

With Tuesday’s five medals, India's count rose to four gold, two silver and two bronze. They occupy fifth place in the tally, after Australia, South Africa, England and New Zealand.

They won two gold and a silver on Monday, the opening day of competition.

Fifteen-year-old weightlifter Lather gave India gold in boys’ 62kg category with a lift of 258kg (120kg in snatch and 138kg in clean and jerk).

His effort in snatch was a new Commonwealth Youth Games record.

Indian track and field athletes took part in three finals on the second day of competition and all delivered personal best performances while winning a medal each in their respective events.

Javelin thrower Mohd Hadish, a silver medallist in the inaugural Asian Youth Championships at Doha earlier this year, proved a cut above the rest of the field, clearing 79.29 metres while securing the gold.

Although he marginally missed the Games’ record of 81.53 metres, set by South African Morne Moolman in the last edition at Isle of Man in 2011, the Indian thrower dominated the field.

George Davies of England was a distant second with an effort of 68.23m.

Quarter-milers Jisna Mathew and Chandan Bauri also did well in winning a bronze each.

Jisna, an up-and-coming athlete from the stables of the legendary P T Usha and silver medallist from the Asian Youth Championships in Doha, clocked an impressive 53.14 secs to win a silver in the girls' 400m final. She missed the gold by just 5/100th of a second to Jamaican Junelle Bromfield.

Nigeria's Idamadudu Praise Oghenef took the bronze with a timing of 53.20 secs.

Bengal boy Chandan Bauri, drawn in the final with World Youth Championships finalists, ran a career-best 46.99 secs to claim a bronze medal.

Botswana's Karabo Sibanda, fifth in the Youth Worlds at Cali, Colombia in July, posted a personal best and Games record of 45.83 secs to win gold.

Jamal Walton of Cayman Islands, who clocked an impressive 45.99s in his fourth place finish at Cali, won the silver medal in 46.46 secs.

All the three performances of Indian athletes on Tuesday were also new Indian youth records in the respective events.

In other athletics events, half-miler Beant Singh qualified for Wednesday’s 800m final with a below-par 1:52.93 seconds as a fastest loser in the heats.

In boys’ squash, Senthilkumar beat Pakistan's Israr Ahmad in the bronze medal match 3-0 (11-0, 11-0, 11-0).