Glasgow, Jul 30 (PTI): India’s long wait for a maiden Commonwealth Games medal in men’s shot put continued as Asian Games champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor and Samardeep Singh Gill finished fifth and seventh respectively in the final here on Thursday.
India had never won a Commonwealth Games medal in the event and the elusive podium finish remained out of reach despite fielding two finalists.
Nigeria’s Chukwuebuka Enekwechi produced a stunning fifth-round effort of 21.07m to snatch the gold medal from defending champion Tom Walsh of New Zealand, whose opening throw of 21.03m had looked good enough for the title.
England’s Scott Lincoln took the bronze with 20.70m.
Samardeep made a steady start with a throw of 19.56m, which kept him inside the top five after the opening round, while Walsh immediately stamped his authority with a massive 21.03m effort. Lincoln (20.70m) and Enekwechi (19.60m) were also ahead of the Indian.
Toor, regarded as India’s strongest medal hope after qualifying second overall, opened with 20.06m to move into third place.
Samardeep improved marginally to 19.63m in the second round but Enekwechi surged ahead of Toor with a 20.48m throw. Toor, meanwhile, slipped back after managing only 19.98m.
The younger Indian finally breached the 20m mark with a third-round effort of 20.03m, still well below his personal and season’s best of 20.46m.
South Africa’s Aiden Smith (20.31m) and New Zealand’s Nick Palmer (20.27m) also crossed the 20m barrier, pushing both Indians further down the standings.
Toor responded with 20.27m in the fourth round to climb back into the top five while Samardeep fouled. The bottom four competitors were eliminated after three attempts.
Needing a big throw to challenge for the medals, Toor could only manage 20.26m in the fifth round before signing off with 19.79m in his final attempt.
Enekwechi then produced the decisive moment of the competition with a 21.07m heave in the fifth round, overtaking Walsh to secure the title.
Toor had entered the final after qualifying second overall with a throw of 20.14m in Group A behind Walsh (21.03m), while Samardeep advanced as the fifth-best qualifier with a 19.95m effort in Group B. PTI APS APS KHS
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