India’s expectations centre around Anju

Beijing: On Friday, the blue riband event, the athletics begin. Realistically, not much of a hope for a medal here, but who knows, upsets can always happen.

The hepthaletes — J.J. Sobha, Pramila Aiyappa and city girl Sushmita Singha Roy begin their campaign on Friday. For the first time ever, India will be represented by three heptathletes.

At 6072, Pramila is only 32nd in the world this season; Shobha (6043) and Sushmita (6029) are 37th and 40th, respectively.

Hyleas Fountain of the US set the tone for heptathlon, logging 6667 points last month. That, in fact, is the year’s best in the seven-leg women’s event so far.

“To merely take part in an Olympics is a dream come true,” Sushmita told The Telegraph. “The rest, like a medal, come later.”

She practised for an hour in the morning, alone, following the schedule drawn up for her by coach Kuntal Roy. She reiterated on Thursday what she had said earlier, that she has realistic targets: “Six thousand points and I will be satisfied.” Medal target, she had said, is London 2012.

Heptathlon is held over two days and on Friday, events to be held are the 110m hurdles, shot put, 200m and high jump.

It will be a memorable day for the Calcutta girl. “Memorable not only because it will be my Olympic debut but also because it happens to be our Independence Day,” she concluded.

Expectations obviously centre on Anju Bobby George among the 17 athletes who made the Beijing cut. Anju’s best this season has been 6.55m, way down in the season’s list of the best.

“I have always performed better in major championships even when my results have been below par in the rest of the contests in a particular year,” Anju had said prior to Beijing.

Portuguese Naide Gomes (7.12), Brazilian Maurren Higa Maggi (6.99) and American Britney Reese (6.95) lead the season’s lists. Though Anju’s 6.55 looks modest in comparison, she is not lacking in motivation. Anju’s campaign takes off on Tuesday.

The women's 4x400m relay team (Mandeep Kaur, Chitra Soman, S. Geetha, Sini Jose, M.R. Poovamma and K. Mridula) looked the best medal bet. However, they finished 15th in the qualifying (the top 16 qualify) with 3:28.29 in the second leg of the Asian Grand Prix series in Korat, Thailand.

Middle distance stars such as Chatholi Hamza, Sajeesh Joseph, Rajeev Ramesan and Sinimole Paulose, distance runners Surendra Singh and Preeja Sreedharan and triple jumper Renjith Maheswary are not expected to do anything out of the ordinary. Discus thrower Vikas Gowda ought to make it to the finals.

Preeja begins her campaign on Friday. “I will go all out to improve my personal best. That is my target here in Beijing,” she said, when asked where she sees herself.

Unlike in Athens where there were three, women’s discus this time has only two contestants — Krishna Poonia and Harwant Kaur.

“After training in the US under former Olympic champion Mac Wilkins, I think I’m much improved and confident. The rest we shall see once the competition begins,” said Poonia, whose event too starts on Friday.