Luka qualifies for semis, Om Prakash out

India's ace middle distance runner Tintu Luka on Thursday raced to women's 800m semifinals but shot putter Om Prakash Karhana failed to qualify for the final round of the World Athletics Championships.

India's ace middle distance runner Tintu Luka on Thursday raced to women's 800m semifinals but shot putter Om Prakash Karhana failed to qualify for the final round of the World Athletics Championships.

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Luka clocked 2:01.89 to finish sixth in her heats, and was among the fastest loser in the field which fetched her passage into Friday's semifinal encounter.

The 21-year-old prodigy of legendary P T Usha has a personal best timing of 1:59.17 which she recorded last year during the VTB Continental Cup and which is also the national record.

Shot putter Om Prakash finished 12th in Group A qualification round and 23rd overall with a throw of 19.29m. National record holder in triple jumper Renjith Maheswary will also compete on Friday.