Avinash Sable finishes 11th in men's 3000m steeplechase final at Paris Olympics

NEW DELHI: India's Avinash Sable couldn't maintain the speed required to compete with the world's elite in the men's 3000m steeplechase final at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday. The 29-year-old finished the race in 11th place, recording a time of 8 minutes 14.18 seconds.
Despite briefly taking the lead during the thrilling contest, Sable was unable to improve upon his recent performance at the Paris Diamond League, where he had set a new national record with a time of 8:09.91 seconds, PTI reported.
Sable has dedicated a significant portion of his time to training in foreign countries, with the goal of being well-prepared for the Paris Games. His training has been made possible through financial support provided by the government.

Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco defended his title, recording his season's best time of 8:06.05. Kenneth Rooks of the USA (8:06.41) took silver, while Abraham Kibiwot of Kenya (8:06.47) claimed bronze.
World record holder Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia did not finish the race after falling on the track near the end.
Meanwhile, triple jumpers Praveen Chitravel and Abdulla Aboobacker missed out on the finals after disappointing performances of 16.25m and 16.49m, respectively. Chitravel placed 27th, while Aboobacker finished 21st out of 32 competitors.
Chitravel holds the national record of 17.37m, and Aboobacker has a personal best of 17.19m. To advance to the final, athletes needed to jump 17.10m or be among the 12 best performers.