Bhubaneswar: It was a memorable day for the host Odisha with local star athletes Dutee Chand and Srabani Nanda both winning bronze medals in 4x100 m relay event on the third day of 22nd Asian Athletics Championships here.
National record holder Dutee and Srabani along with Merlin Joseph and Himashree Roy as the other two sprinters of the 4-member relay team completed the 4x100m final rounds in 44.57 seconds while finishing third.
"We are very happy to secure a medal and it is all because of everyone's encouragement and blessings. We tried our best to force into the top two but still this is our first medal in relay event in Asian Championships so we are very happy," Dutee told mediapersons after the event.
On the other hand, rising sprinting sensation and local boy Amiya Mallick impressed the home crowd with his glittering performance as he stormed into the semis of men's 200 m event even though his performances in individual 100 m and relay last night were not up to mark.
Another athlete Jauna Murmu also did not impress as she crashed out of the 400 m hurdles finishing sixth while Annu R secured the second spot and won the silver medal in this event for India.
Following Dutee and Srabani's win, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan congratulated both the sprinters.