Animesh Kujur and Gurindervir Singh traded the Indian 100m national record within minutes of each other at the National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 in Ranchi on Friday.
Competing in the 100m semi-finals at the Birsa Munda Stadium, the 25-year-old Gurindervir Singh first broke Animesh Kujur’s previous national record of 10.18s, set last year, with a time of 10.17s to top the first semis heat.
The 22-year-old Animesh responded immediately in the next semi-final heat to reclaim the record with 10.15s. He also became the first Indian athlete to dip below the 10.16s entry standard set for the Commonwealth Games by the Athletics Federation of India.
“It’s all about hard work,” Animesh Kujur said after the race.
The men’s 100m final will feature a direct showdown between Animesh and Gurindervir on Saturday.
The Federation Cup 2026, one of India’s premier domestic athletics meets, serves as the lone selection trial for the Commonwealth Games 2026, scheduled to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, from July 23 to August 2.
With each country restricted to a maximum of 32 track and field athletes for the Games, the AFI has set stringent qualification standards across events. For the men’s 100m, athletes needed to better the national record to secure qualification.
The opening day of the National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 also featured finals in the 10000m, hammer throw and women’s long jump.
Asian Games silver medallist Ancy Sojan topped the women’s long jump field with a personal best of 6.75m, ahead of Shaili Singh (6.58m) and Bhavani Yadav (6.39m).
In the women’s discus throw, Seema breached the entry standard of 56.85m set for the Commonwealth Games with a 57.29m effort to finish first. Nidhi Rani (55.05m) and Krishna Jayasankar (55.00m) were second and third, respectively.
Federation Cup athletics 2026: Day 1 winners
- Men’s 10000m (CWG qualification – 27:39.03): 1. Deepak Bhatt (29:42.93s); 2. Shailesh Khushwaha (29:57.56s); 3. Prashant Chaudhary (30:36.97s)
- Women’s 10000m (CWG qualification – 31:14.14): 1. Ravina Gayakwad (35:30.98s); 2. Soniya (36:16.22s); Aarti Pawara (36:24.79s)
- Men’s hammer throw (CWG qualification – 73.09m): 1. Ashish Jakhar (68.52m); 2. Damneet Singh (67.62m); Ajay Kumar (64.93m)
- Women’s long jump (CWG qualification – 6.84m): 1. Ancy Sojan (6.75m); 2. Shaili Singh (6.58m); 3. Bhavani Yadav (6.39m)
- Women’s discus throw (CWG qualification – 56.85m): 1. Seema (57.29m); 2. Nidhi Rani (55.05m); 3. Krishna Jayasankar (55.00m)
- Men’s 3000m steeplechase (CWG qualification – 8:30.26s): 1. Balkishan (8:56.01s); 2. Sharuk Khan (8:56.63s); 3. Sunil Jinabhai (8:58.3s)
- Women’s 3000m steeplechase (CWG qualification – 9:27.41s): 1. Ankita Dhyani (9:48.16s); 2. Prachi Devkar (10:16.29s); 3. Anju (10:28.23s)
read more: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/federation-cup-athletics-2026-100m-national-record
