Top Indian athletes to miss Asian Indoor Championships

NEW DELHI: National record holder high jumper Hari Shankar Roy and heptathlete PJ Vinod will be among India medal contenders as a 20-member team left the country for the fourth Asian Indoor Championships to be held in Tehran from February 24-26.
Athletics Federation of India has decided not to send some top athletes, including last edition medal winners, though the team has promising athletes like shot putter Saurabh Vij and sprinter Abbdul Najeeb Qureshi (60m).
In the last edition in 2008 in Doha, India had topped the medal tally in the absence of top stars from leading countries like China by bagging 17 medals (five gold, nine silver and three bronze).
Vinod had bagged heptathlon gold in the last edition.
The Team:
Men: Abdul Najeeb Qureshi (60m); Sandeep Shivkumar Parmar (60m hurdles); Bibin Mathew (400m and 4x400m); Ghamnora Ram (800m); Ajay Kumar, Shake Mortaja, Valliayampoikayill Baby Bineesh, Harpreet Singh ((all 4x400m); Pulimoottil Vinod Joseph (Heptathlon); Sourabh Vij, Satyender Singh (both shot put); Md. Ibrar (long jump); Hari Shankar Roy (high jump).
Women: Priyanka Pawar, Jauna Murmu (both 400m and 4x400m); Ashwini Chidananda Akkunji, Tiana Mary Thomas, Karnatapu Sowjanya (all 4x400m); Prajusha Maliakkal Anthony, Resmi Bose (both long jump and triple jump).