Kishore Jena Paris Olympics 2024, Athletics: Know Your Olympian – News18

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Last Updated: July 20, 2024, 22:00 IST

Kishore Jena is set to make his maiden appearance at the Summer Olympics this year in Paris.

Born in Odisha, Jena started playing volleyball at an early age, hoping to get a job in the Indian Army under the sports quota. He soon developed an interest in the javelin throw and began training under coach Nilamadhab Deo at the Odisha government’s Sports Hostel.

Jena’s talent came to light in 2017 when he broke a state record with a 72.77m throw. The following year, he was recruited by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and was posted in Bhopal.

After struggling in a few competitions, Jena finally won the bronze medal at the 2022 National Open Athletics Championships.

Jena, in 2023, kicked off the season with with a gold at the Indian Open Throws Competition in Bellary. Later in the year, he first time broke the 80m mark at the Indian Grand Prix to secure another gold medal.

He won a silver medal at the Sri Lanka nationals, registering an 84.38m throw.

It also earned him an entry into the 2023 World Athletics Championships where he finished fifth with a 84.77m throw.

Accompanied by reigning Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, Jena participated at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year. He recorded his personal best throw of 87.54m at the continental event and won the silver medal.

Age: 28

Sports/Discipline: Javelin Throw

Working Ranking: 7 (Men’s Javelin Throw)

First Olympic Games: Paris 2024

Major Achievements

Asian Games 2023: Silver (Men’s Javelin Throw)
Indian Grand Prix 2023: Gold (Men’s Javelin Throw)
World Athletics Championships 2023: Fifth Place (Men’s Javelin Throw)

Paris Olympics Qualification

Jena fell only 43cm short of the automatic Olympic qualification mark in his World Athletics Championships debut in Budapest last year. He finally ensured his place at the Paris Olympics by winning an Asiad silver at the 2023 Hangzhou Games.

Recent Performances

Jena had been struggling to breach the 80m mark for a long time till the end of 2022. At that point in his career, Jena thought of quitting javelin throw but his father motivated him to continue in the sport.

He regained confidence by winning the gold medal at the 2023 Indian Grand Prix where he covered a distance of 81.05m. He performed impressively in the World Championship debut as well but missed out on the bronze.