Women’s 100m among 15 finals with single entries at 1st Kerala State Open Athletics meet

Kerala has such a strong history in athletics that it is strange to find track & field events with minimal participation in the state. Yet that is what the inaugural Kerala State Open Athletics Championship, to be held at the LB Stadium in Kollam on April 11, offers.

The list of participants released on Friday by the Kerala State Athletics Association (KSSA) shows single entry each in 15 events, including the women's 100 metre final.

Of the 58 finals in the one-day event, only two -- Under-20 men's 400 metre and Under-20 men's 200 metre -- have the number of participants in double digits (16).

Besides competitions in men's and women's categories, the championship features events in the Under-20 men's and women's categories too.

The KSAA said the championship was aimed at 'elevating the standard of athletics in the state to a higher level'. KSAA secretary Chandrasekharan Pillai K said they were not worried about the minimal participation as the purpose of the meet was to help athletes who might otherwise struggle to reach the national level.

“An athlete needs to make a mark in at least two such state-level events to qualify for the open nationals and make similar appearances at that level to reach the Federation Cup. So our aim with the first state open meet is to provide proof of performance for our athletes,” Chandrasekharan Pillai told Onmanorama.

It is unclear why a lot of the district-level athletes chose to skip the event, but one reason could be that they want to be in the best of shape for the senior state championship to be held at Nedumkandam by the end of May.