Chhattisgarh sprint star Animesh Kujur clinched a double gold for Odisha on the penultimate day of the 65th National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championship at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar today. He completed the double by winning the gold in mens 100m dash with a time of 10.28 seconds. Animesh bagged his first gold in 200m dash two days back.

Two more Odisha sprinters qualified for the mens 100m final, but could not win a medal. Dondapati Mrutyam Jayaram and Lalu Prasad Bhoi finished sixth and seventh, clocking 10.51s and 10.53s respectively. The 100m gold by Animesh was the only medal Odisha could win today. The host State has, so far, bagged a total of six medals, which include three gold, one silver and two bronze.

Meanwhile, Odisha woman Olympic sprinter Srabani Nanda finally made a much-awaited appearance in the ongoing championship by competing in the 100m dash. But she failed to qualify for the final after finishing third in her heats with a time of 11.80 seconds. Two more Odisha women sprinters  _ Mousumi Roy (11.94s) and Marymukta Soreng (11.97s) _ also bowed out in 100m heats. 

Among other Odisha athletes in action today, mens high-jumper Swadhin Kumar Majhi finished sixth with an effort of 2.08 metres and woman long-jumper Manisha Merel ended ninth with a leap of 5.99 metres.
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PHOTO: Mens 100m gold medallist Animesh Kujur (centre) poses with other two medal winners at the 65th National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championship in Bhubaneswar on 27 June 2026.