Indian athletes Jyothi Yarraji and Shaili Singh are setting their sights on the 2024 Paris Olympics, aiming to secure their qualification by improving their ranking points. They will participate in multiple tournaments across Europe from June.
Jyothi Yarraji and Shaili to be funded by TOPS
Jyothi Yarraji, a 24-year-old Asian Games silver medallist and national record holder in women’s 100m hurdles, will compete in six international meets across Europe between May and June. She narrowly missed the Olympic qualification mark of 12.77 seconds when she set a national record of 12.78 seconds at the World University Games in Chengdu, China, last year.
Shaili Singh, a 20-year-old long jumper and a silver medallist at the Asian Athletics Championships, will participate in four European athletics events. The Paris 2024 Olympics qualifying standard for women’s long jump is 6.86m. Shaili, whose personal best stands at 6.76m, will have to outdo herself to meet this standard.
Their proposals to compete in these tournaments were approved by the Indian Sports Ministry’s Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) on Friday. This approval grants them the necessary financial aid to participate in these events.
MOC also approved proposals of Badminton players Kiran George, Ayush Shetty, and Rakshitha Sree. Kiran has proposed to participate in the Malaysia Masters (BWF 500) while Ayush has requested financial assistance to participate in a Thailand Open along with Malaysia Masters. Meanwhile, Rakshitha will head to Denmark to participate in the STATE Denmark Challenge followed by the Slovenia Open in Ljubljana.
MOC also approved proposals of Table Tennis players Manav Thakkar and Archana Kamath, both Manav and Archana plan to compete in WTT Contender Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, and WTT Contender Mendoza, Argentina with TOPS covering their Airfare, Hospitality package cost, and Visa fees.
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