The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has decided to protest against decision made by the Asian Games 2026 officials as they awarded Shaili Singh fourth place in Women’s Long Jump.
The Indian officials claim that measurement done by the officials was not correct and it denied a medal to the Indian athlete. The AFI will be moving to Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to contest the decision made by the officials.
Shaili Singh’s Long Jump Controversy
Shaili finished fourth with a best jump of 6.42m during the women’s long jump held Sunday, one place behind partner Ancy Sojan, who managed 6.53m. China’s Huang Yingying claimed the gold medal with her last effort of 6.55m. The controversy surrounds Shaili’s fourth attempt, which is accredited as 6.41m. Per Shaili’s coach and former Indian long jump legend Anju Bobby George, an official far away from the pit measured it wrongly.
“We saw her jump was clearly ahead of the gold-winning mark. Initially, the official near the landing pit pointed to Shaili’s leg mark for the measurement. But later another official who was standing far behind came and pointed to a mark which was far shorter from board,” Anju told PTI.
“They took the measurement at the mark pointed by the official who was standing far behind. The measurement should have been done on the mark pointed by the official nearest to the landing pit,” added Anju.
What Will Happen Next to Shaili Singh?
If going by AFI’s statement, Shaili Singh could win a gold medal, with Anju claiming that her jump cleared the gold medal mark. Meanwhile, this would result in Ancy Sojan’s silver being turned into a bronze. China’s Huang Yingying, who originally won the gold medal would see herself drop to the second spot to a silver medal.
A gold could prove to be a major help for Team India as they attempt to break into the top 10 points table.