Nishad Kumar wins T47 long jump gold at Asian Para Games

Nishad Kumar won the men’s T47 long jump at the Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya on October 19, recording a best distance of 7.11 meters for India’s second gold medal of the Games. Result accounts listed Uzbekistan’s Omadbek Khasanov second at 6.99 meters and Sri Lanka’s Mohammadu Safran third at 6.55 meters. Kumar opened with a 6.95-meter jump and moved into the lead with 7.09 meters on his second attempt. He reached 7.11 meters on his third, fouled on his fourth attempt and matched his winning distance on his fifth, before closing with 7.07 meters, according to accounts of the final. The victory came in an event outside Kumar’s principal discipline. He is best known as a high jumper and has won two Paralympic silver medals. One report said he began competing in long jump only last year and that the Asian Para Games final was his first appearance in the event at a major international competition. Kumar’s 7.11-meter result was enough to finish 12 centimeters ahead of Khasanov. The standings reported for the final placed Safran third, 44 centimeters behind Khasanov. The result accounts also described Kumar’s best distance as his season’s leading performance in the competition,...