Manikanta Hoblidhar Shrugs Off Stomach Cramps to Win 100m Gold at National Open Athletics Championships

New Delhi, October 2026 : Karnataka sprinter Manikanta Hoblidhar overcame stomach cramps to emerge as the fastest man at the 65th National Open Athletics Championships at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Friday, clocking 10.25 seconds to win the men’s 100m gold.

Hoblidhar had suffered stomach cramps on Thursday night but returned to the track more than 20 hours later to deliver a strong performance. The international sprinter showed no visible signs of discomfort during Friday evening’s race and secured the title against a competitive field.

However, he narrowly missed breaking his own meet record of 10.19 seconds, set last year.

“I was pretty confident of improving my personal best here in Delhi but missed because of stomach cramps,” Hoblidhar said. “I am happy with my performance as I have been undergoing rehab since April this year.”

Lalu Prasad Bhoi of Railways finished second in the 100m with 10.43 seconds, while Laukik Melge of the Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) secured third place in 10.45 seconds.

Earlier in the morning session, SSCB race walker Servin Sebastian suffered disappointment in the men’s 21km event. Believing he had finished first, Sebastian saw his gold medal hopes dashed after receiving a two-minute penalty for a technical rules violation. He eventually finished fourth in 1:32:46.00.

Suraj Panwar of Uttarakhand was declared the winner in the men’s 21km race walk, finishing in 1:30:48.00. Deepak Gurjar of Delhi took silver in 1:30:55.00, while Vishvendra Singh of Madhya Pradesh claimed bronze in 1:31:32.00.

In the men’s 400m, Tamil Nadu’s Akash Raj won gold in 46.24 seconds, narrowly ahead of Railways’ Vikrant Panchal, who clocked 46.26 seconds. Mijo Kurian of SSCB finished third in 46.45 seconds.

Railways athletes also dominated the men’s 1500m, with Arjun Waskale taking gold in 3:43.04, followed by Shivam Sharma in 3:43.12 and SSCB’s Rahul Baloda in 3:43.14.

In the women’s 400m, Anjli of Haryana won gold in 53.37 seconds, ahead of Karnataka’s Priya Mohan (53.55) and Himachal Pradesh’s Priya Thakur (53.56).

Railways’ Ankita won the women’s 1500m in 4:13.18, while Moumita Mondal secured the women’s 100m hurdles title in 13.48 seconds. Manpreet Kaur of Railways won the women’s shot put with a throw of 17.07 metres.

Results: 65th National Open Athletics Championships

Men’s Events

Event	Gold	Silver	Bronze
100m	Manikanta Hoblidhar (Karnataka) — 10.25s	Lalu Prasad Bhoi (Railways) — 10.43s	Laukik Melge (SSCB) — 10.45s
400m	Akash Raj (Tamil Nadu) — 46.24s	Vikrant Panchal (Railways) — 46.26s	Mijo Kurian (SSCB) — 46.45s
1500m	Arjun Waskale (Railways) — 3:43.04	Shivam Sharma (Railways) — 3:43.12	Rahul Baloda (SSCB) — 3:43.14
110m hurdles	Muhammed Lazan VK (SSCB) — 13.70s	Agraceson Jeeva (SSCB) — 13.85s	Manav R (Railways) — 13.97s
Triple jump	Sebastian VS (SSCB) — 16.54m	Dinesh V (Tamil Nadu) — 16.33m	Mohanraj J (Tamil Nadu) — 16.29m
Discus throw	Dharamraj Yadav (SSCB) — 55.90m	Abhimanyu (SSCB) — 55.64m	Nirbhay Singh (Railways) — 55.46m
Decathlon	Yamandeep Sharma (Railways) — 7,068 points	Usaid (SSCB) — 7,005 points	Gokul KR (Kerala) — 6,975 points
21km race walk	Suraj Panwar (Uttarakhand) — 1:30:48.00	Deepak Gurjar (Delhi) — 1:30:55.00	Vishvendra Singh (Madhya Pradesh) — 1:31:32.00

Women’s Events

Event	Gold	Silver	Bronze
400m	Anjli (Haryana) — 53.37s	Priya Mohan (Karnataka) — 53.55s	Priya Thakur (Himachal Pradesh) — 53.56s
1500m	Ankita (Railways) — 4:13.18	Lili Das (Railways) — 4:19.05	Komal Jagadale (Railways) — 4:22.67
100m hurdles	Moumita Mondal (Railways) — 13.48s	Anjali C (All India Police) — 13.50s	Nandhini K (Tamil Nadu) — 13.53s
Shot put	Manpreet Kaur (Railways) — 17.07m	Srishti Vig (Delhi) — 16.11m	Rekha (Railways) — 15.72m
21km race walk	Mokavi M (Railways) — 1:45:39.00	Munita Prajapati (Railways) — 1:45:43.00	Bhawna Jat (Railways) — 1:45:47.00