Tejaswin Shankar wins his first outdoor tournament of the year in US Athletics Meet

Much to the delight of the fans, Tejaswin Shankar claimed his first win in an outdoor tournament this year in the high jump on Sunday, March 31. He beat the likes of Brady Palen and Zachary Biel to claim the top spot with a best attempt of 2.17 m.

Notably, this was Shankar’s first title in an outdoor meet this season, at the Wichita State Shocker Spring Invite. Tejaswin Shankar bagged the top prize with a leap of 2.17m. He stayed ahead of Brady Palen, who also logged 2.17m, and Zachary Biel (2.05m).

Interestingly, this is Shankar’s lowest effort of the season in his three events so far. The Shocker Spring Invitational, held at the Cessna Stadium on the campus of Wichita State University, is considered a category F national-level meet, according to World Athletics.

Tejaswin Shankar started his season with a commendable effort of 2.23 m jump, bagging the top prize at the International High Jump Gala Elmos, an indoor challenger event, in Belgium.

This was followed by a fourth-place finish at the Hvezdy v Nehvizdech, an indoor silver-level meet in the Czech Republic, with 2.22m. The Belgium meet is a World Athletics Category D event, while the Czech event is rated as Category B.

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Has Tejaswin Shankar qualified for the Paris Olympics?

The Asian Games medalist is currently eyeing a spot in the upcoming Olympics. His current best attempt stands at 2.29m, achieved in 2018. However, the qualifying standard for men’s high jump at the Paris Olympics 2024 is set at 2.23 m.

Earlier, in February, the Indian athlete requested financial assistance under Target Olympics Podium Scheme (TOPS) funding to participate in continental tour events in Europe and it got approved. It allowed him to participate in the aforementioned events and helped him earn valuable ranking points.

The national record holder made headlines in 2022 after bagging a high jump bronze medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. This was followed by a historic silver medal prize at the 2023 Asian Games.

He owns the national record for both the men’s high jump and decathlon events.