Shaili Singh cleared 6.65m to clinch the bronze medal on her senior international debut at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Tour-Gold event, on Sunday in Yokohama.
The 19-year-old had earlier won a silver in the U-20 Worlds in 2021 and has a personal best of 6.76m.
The competition included strong competitors like Brooke Buschkuehl of Australia, who is ranked eighth in the world and won silver in the Commonwealth Games, as well as Maryse Luzolo of Germany, who is ranked 17th in the world.
Singh, recorded her best jump on the first attempt and held the lead until the halfway point. However, Maryse produced a wind-aided jump of 6.79m (2.5m/s) in the fifth round, securing her victory.
Buschkuehl, with a personal best of 7.13m, took home the silver medal with a jump of 6.77m.
This was Singh's first participation in an international meet and she has been regaining her form after coming back from injury. She now aims to qualify for the world championships in Budapest, which will take place in August.
What is Shaili Singh's personal best?
In April, Singh achieved a jump of 6.76m at the Indian Grand Prix, making it the second-best performance in Indian history, behind her mentor Anju Bobby George's 6.83m.
Her 6.76m jump currently ranks as the top jump in Asia this season and seventh in the world rankings, led by Jamaican athlete Ackelia Smith's 7.08m.
Singh's performance at the Indian Grand Prix also met the qualifying standard set by the Indian Federation (AFI) for the Guangzhou Asian Games, scheduled for September-October.
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#TOPScheme Athlete @Shailisingh012 finishes 3⃣rd at Golden Grand Prix 2023, 🇯🇵
— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) May 21, 2023
The @SAI_Bengaluru trainee produced a leap of 6.65 to notch up a 3⃣rd place finish in Women's Long Jump Event 🥳
Heartiest congratulations Shaili! Keep rocking👏🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/SaDuEZL4wU
What did her coach Robert Bobby George say?
“It was a Grand Prix meet and the field was tough, so I would say 6.65m is a good (international) season opener. She is in the range of 6.65-6.80m. She could have done better but today her technique was not proper.
"She had Covid at the end of April and had to miss the Junior Federation Cup. She has been feeling a bit of suffocation and breathlessness during training. The weather, crowd, was good here and it got her going," her coach Robert Bobby George said.
Securing this victory will be instrumental in earning crucial ranking points for Singh as she aims to qualify for the upcoming world championships, set to commence on August 19. Currently positioned at 42nd place in the 'Road to Budapest' rankings, Singh needs to break into the top 36 to ensure her inclusion based on world rankings.
“There are still a few events before the world championships qualification ends (July 30) and the aim is to get rankings points. We are also trying to get into some Diamond League events this year," said Robert, who trains her at the Anju Bobby High Performance Centre in Bengaluru.
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