Jyothi Yarraji became the first Indian to win a gold medal in the 100m hurdles at the Asian Athletics Championships in Bangkok, Thailand on the 13th (local time). The Indian athlete competed fiercely in wet and slippery conditions caused by heavy rain and won the gold medal in the final with a time of 13.09 seconds.

Japan’s Asuka Terada (13.13) and Masumi Aoki (13.26) finished second and third respectively. By winning this continental competition, Yarraji qualified for the World Championship.

Yarraji was also fastest in the event, reaching 12.98 seconds and finishing first in race one, failing to break the meeting record of 12.97 seconds.

After winning the medals, Yarraji said he was focused on the fun and not thinking about the medals, expecting a tough fight against his Japanese rivals. “Being consistent with clocking sub-13s timings, I am confident now about achieving my goals of consistently clocking sub 12.9, 12.8 and 12.7s timings in the near future,” Yarraji said to the reporters.

Yarraji became the only Indian woman in history to break the under-13 record for the second time by defeating her Japanese rival in the photo shoot. She entered the competition this year as Asia’s favorite and fastest woman.

She will also represent the country in the 200m at the Continental Championships. Her performance at the Senior National Track and Field Championships earned her two gold and one silver medals, and she was also named the best athlete of the event.

Including Jyothi’s medal, India had finished with 3 gold medals and 2 bronze medals on the second day of the Asian Championships.