In a big blow to her World Championships’ hopes, Jyothi Yarraji, the Asian champion and national record holder 100m hurdler, suffered a knee injury during a training session and now faces a race against time to qualify for the marquee event later this year.
Yarraji, the Asian Games gold and silver medallist, is among the top candidates to qualify for the World Championships in Tokyo in September. However, the recent injury has derailed her chances.
“Due to an unfortunate injury to my knee during training a few days back, I’ve had to put a pause on my season,” Yarraji, who is the national record holder with a time of 12.78 sec, posted on her Instagram story.
“I’m working with my medical team to assess my options and take a decision on the way forward,” said the 25-year-old.
Yarraji, who made a comeback this season following an injury after the Paris Olympics last year, is yet to breach the direct qualification mark of 12.73 seconds. However, her 12.96-second effort while winning gold in the Asian Championships in May places her among the 16 athletes who can qualify for the World Championships through the world rankings.
Can Yarraji maintain her ranking?
Currently positioned at the 12th spot, Yarraji is among a select few who can enter the World Championships through world ranking quota, but the injury will make it difficult for her to compete in events and maintain her spot.
There are two ways to qualify for the World Championships – direct entry by breaching the qualification mark or through world ranking quota. The qualification window closes on August 24.
Yarraji’s career in the last year or so has been marred by injuries. She suffered a hip flexor injury during training in Finland after the 2024 Paris Games, which prompted her to change her technique at the start of the 2025 season as she switched from a seven-stride approach to her original eight-stride approach to reduce injury risk.
She started the season with gold in the 100m hurdles and 200m race in the Uttarakhand National Games in February before bagging the top prize in the 100m hurdles in the Federation Cup, and in May, she defended her Asian Championships title.