Bhubaneswar, Aug 17 (PTI) Paris Olympics bronze-winning quarter-miler Muzala Samukonga of Zambia will be among 187 participants, including in 88 Indians, vying for top honours in the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver Meet here on Saturday.
The one-day meet will see athletes from 27 nations, including 143 participants from 12 Asian countries.
Local fans will get the opportunity to see 88 Indian athletes test themselves against 99 international competitors at the Kalinga Stadium.
Among the international contingents, Sri Lanka have sent 24 athletes, South Africa 17, and Brazil 11.
A host of top Indian athletes are set to take part in the event, including the likes of Commonwealth Games medallist long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, women’s national record holder long jumper Ancy Sojan, ace 100m hurdles runner Jyothi Yarraji, top sprinters Gurindervir Singh and Animesh Kujur as well as javelin thrower Kishore Jena.
Two-time Olympic medallist javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra is not expected to feature in the event as he is competing at the Lausanne Diamond League on Friday.
The event, which was upgraded to silver level from the bronze last year, will have 36 athletes ranked among the top 50 in the World Athletics chart.
Leading the lineup is Zambian Samukonga, the World No. 6 and 2024 Olympic Games men’s 400m bronze medallist, who boasts a season best of 44.02 seconds and personal best of 43.74 seconds.
He will be joined by Nigeria’s World No. 10 shot putter Chukwuebuka Enekwechi, a Commonwealth Games champion and Paris Olympics finalist.
There will be 18 events split equally between men and women. Male athletes will compete in 100m, 400m, 800m, 110m hurdles, high jump, long jump, shot put and javelin throw.
Female athletes will compete in 100m, 400m, 1500m, 100m hurdles, high jump, long jump, javelin throw, and discus throw.
Top performers will earn crucial world ranking points as well as cash prizes.
Winners will pocket USD 1,600, USD 1,200 for second place finishers and USD 900 for third place finishers.
The meet serves as a vital stepping stone to the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships and World Athletics Indoor Championships to be hosted at Kalinga Stadium in 2028.
Addressing a pre-event press conference on Monday, Vijay Yeddula, Director of Sports for the Government of Odisha, stated that stepping up to a silver-level Continental Tour event was a monumental milestone for the state, cementing Odisha as the premier state for the athletics ecosystem in India.
He said to inspire young children and give families the opportunity to witness world-class sporting action first hand, entry to Kalinga Stadium will be completely free for all spectators.
World Athletics Vice President and AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla said having 36 top-50 athletes will make the competition fierce and serve as an outstanding warm-up event ahead of the Asian Games in Japan next month.