Malayali long jump ace Sreeshankar beats Olympic medallist to strike gold in South Africa

India’s Malayali long jumper M Sreeshankar struck gold at the Simbine Classic World Athletics Continental Tour Silver in South Africa.

Sreeshankar cleared 8.12 m to finish first, ahead of local star Divan Manuel (8.07 m). South African ace Luvo Manyonga, an Olympic silver medallist from 2016, finished third with a modest effort of 7.86 m.

Sreeshankar had set a season’s best of 8.15 m on April 4 at the Indian Open Athletics Series in Bengaluru. Last year, the 27-year-old had been out for several months with a knee injury that required surgery. Since returning to fitness in mid-2025, he has secured a handful of domestic and international titles.

Sreeshankar is one of the finest men’s long jumpers India has produced, and has a personal best of 8.41 m set in 2023. However, he is only third among the leading Indian long jumpers this year, behind Shahnawaz Khan and Lokesh Sathyanathan.

Uttar Pradesh teenager Shahnawaz set a new U-20 national record of 8.23 m this month, while Bengaluru-born Lokesh Sathyanathan, who trains in the US, did 8.21 m in March at a meet in Arkansas.