Bhubaneswar: Odisha will host the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver Meet at the Kalinga Stadium here on August 22, marking a significant upgrade from the Bronze-level event held last year.
The one-day meet, organised by the Sports and Youth Services Department in collaboration with the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) and under the aegis of World Athletics, will feature 187 athletes from 27 countries.
As many as 36 athletes in the field are ranked among the top 50 in the world. The lineup will be led by Zambia’s Muzala Samukonga, the World No. 6 and Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medallist in the men’s 400m. Nigeria’s World No. 10 shot putter Chukwuebuka Enekwechi will also compete.
The meet will see 88 Indian athletes compete against 99 international athletes. Sri Lanka will field the largest foreign contingent with 24 athletes, followed by South Africa with 17 and Brazil with 11.
The competition will feature 18 track and field events across the men’s and women’s categories. Athletes will also compete for World Athletics ranking points and cash prizes of $1,600, $1,200 and $900 for the first, second and third positions, respectively.
Addressing a pre-event press conference here on Monday, Director of Sports, Government of Odisha, Dr Vijay Yeddula, described the elevation of the meet to the Silver level as a major milestone for the state’s athletics ecosystem.
He said the event would provide youngsters and sports enthusiasts an opportunity to witness world-class athletics, adding that entry to Kalinga Stadium would be free for spectators.
World Athletics Vice-President and AFI spokesperson Dr Adille Sumariwalla thanked the Odisha Government for upgrading the event to the Silver level. He said the presence of 36 top-50 athletes would make the competition highly competitive and provide an ideal warm-up for athletes ahead of their next major international assignment in Japan.
The meet will also serve as a precursor to the World Athletics Indoor Championships and Asian Indoor Athletics Championships, scheduled to be hosted at Kalinga Stadium in 2028.
Special Secretary, DSYS, Ashok Kumar Panda, and AFI Treasurer B E Stanley were also present at the press conference.
