Avinash Sable, the reigning Asian Games champion, faced a challenging night at the Paris 2024 Olympics, finishing 11th in the men’s 3000m steeplechase final on Thursday.
Despite having set a national record of 8:09.91 in Paris just a month prior, Sable couldn’t replicate that form at the Stade de France, crossing the finish line in 8:14.18.
The gold medal went to Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali, who successfully defended his title with a season-best time of 8:06.05.
He was closely followed by Kenneth Rooks of the USA (8:06.41) and Kenya’s Abraham Kibiwot (8:06.47), who completed the podium.
Ethiopia’s Lamecha Girma, the world record holder with a time of 7:52.11 and a silver medalist from Tokyo 2020, had an unfortunate fall and did not finish the race, leaving 16 athletes to compete in the final.
Sable made an impressive start, leading the pack in the opening lap. However, as the race progressed, he began to lose ground, dropping to fourth by the 1000m mark and then to seventh by the end of the second lap.
The Indian athlete eventually finished over four seconds slower than his national record. Had he matched his previous best of 8:09.91, Sable would have secured an eighth-place finish in the final.
In the qualifying rounds, Sable clocked 8:15.43, which earned him fifth place in his heat and a spot in his first Olympic final.
This marked an improvement from his Tokyo 2020 performance, where he missed out on the final despite being the fastest non-qualifier across all heats.
For Paris 2024, Sable met the direct entry standard of 8:15.00, earning his place in the prestigious event.
Meanwhile, India’s hopes in the men’s triple jump also fell short as Pravin Chithravel and Abdulla Aboobacker failed to qualify for the final.
Chithravel’s best jump of 16.25m on his second attempt placed him 12th in Group A and 27th overall, while Aboobacker’s 16.49m on his third attempt saw him finish 13th in Group B and 21st overall.
To advance to the final, competitors needed to either surpass the automatic qualification mark of 17.10m or rank among the top 12 overall performers.