Asian Athletics Championships 2023 is all set to get underway on June 12 in Bangkok, Thailand. The marquee event will commence on 16. India have announced a strong 54-member contingent for the Championships which comprises 28 men and 26 women. The athletes would look to give their all in the iconic event and grab a record tally of medals. Neeraj Chopra Sends Good Wishes to Indian Contingent at Asian Athletics Championships 2023

Some of the prominent names from the Indian team in the 24th edition of the Asian Athletics Championship include Asian record holder in men’s shot put  Tajinder Pal Singh Toor, star long jumper Murali Shreeshankar and ace hurdler Jyothi Yarraji.

However, India will not have the services of Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra for the Championship. Neeraj is currently training abroad for the World Athletics  Championship in August and thus, he would not be able to participate in the forthcoming instalment of the Asian Athletics Championships.

Neeraj is the number one Javelin thrower in the world and was a sure-shot contender to win gold in the Javelin event. Moreover, he was in top form having clinched the prestigious Diamond League title in Lausanne earlier this month. Thus, the prospect of him topping the charts in the Asian Championships was quite higher. However, with his eyes set on World Championship, he did not enter the Bangkok event. Neeraj Chopra Plans to Achieve Peak Fitness with Focus on World Championship 2023 in August

Like Neeraj, Commonwealth Games medallist Avinash Sable is training for the World Championship and will not feature in the Asian Athletics Championships 2023. The global event is slated to be held from August 19 to 27 in Budapest, Hungary.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 11, 2023 04:27 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).