Hyderabad, Oct 29: Star shooter Anjali Bhagwat and long jumper Anju Bobby George excelled as India gave a huge boost to their medal harvest with a haul of five golds to climb to the fourth position on the medals table after the fifth day of competitions in the inaugural Afro-Asian Games here today. The athletes did the bulk of the medal shopping picking up as many as eight medals, including three golds while the shooters accounted for two golds and two bronzes on a highly rewarding day for the hosts.
The collection of five gold medals today took India to the fourth position on the medals table with eight golds, 21 silvers and 21 bronze medals while Asian powerhouse China maintained their dominance to remain at the top of the table with a tally of 17-6-3. South Africa were in second position with a tally of 12-11-13 followed by Japan with 9-3-1.
The hosts not only had the most satisfying day since the games began but also assured themselves of a few more medals with the tennis players, pugilists and women's hockey team and men's football team moving into the final.
Anju Bobby George, who recently won a bronze medal in the world athletics championship in Paris, stole the limelight by clinching the gold in the women's long jump event with an effort of 6.53m. J J Shobha (Heptathlon) and Anil Kumar (discus) were the other two gold winners in the athletic arena. Bureau Report