The Bhubaneswar Indoor Stadium continues to be a fortress of dreams for Tamil Nadu’s pole vaulter Baranica Elangovan.
On Sunday, the 29-year-old etched her name deeper into Indian athletics history by clearing 4.23 metres on her third attempt, bettering her own national record of 4.22m set just five weeks ago at the same venue.
The moment was electric. With the crowd holding its breath, Baranica sprinted down the runway, planted her pole perfectly, and soared over the bar in a picture-perfect arc. As the bar stayed firmly in place, she landed on the mat with a triumphant smile, knowing she had done it again. “It was another good day for me,” the elated athlete said after the competition, her voice still buzzing with adrenaline.
This is no ordinary streak. Baranica, who shifted her base from Tamil Nadu to Odisha to train at the Bhubaneswar facility, has turned the Indoor Stadium into her personal playground. Two national records in five weeks at the same venue is the kind of dominance rarely seen in Indian track and field. Her consistency and rapid improvement signal a new era for women’s pole vault in the country.
While Baranica stole the spotlight, the second day of the National Indoor Athletics Championships also witnessed thrilling battles across multiple events.
In the men’s heptathlon, Kerala’s Thowfeeq N of NCOE Trivandrum powered his way to gold with a commanding 5350 points. He had already built a strong lead on Day One with 2943 points and never looked back. Army’s Usaid Khan took silver with 5288 points, while Odisha’s Jashbir Nayak claimed bronze with 5250 points.
The men’s U20 heptathlon saw Tamil Nadu’s Kirthik Vasan S clinch the title with 4609 points. NCOE Trivandrum’s Jinoy Jayan finished second (4518 points) and Madhya Pradesh’s Aryan Parkash took third (4509 points).
On the women’s side, Odisha’s own Purnima Hembram delighted the home crowd by winning the pentathlon gold with 3835 points. Uttarakhand’s Isha Chandra Prakash (3671 points) and West Bengal’s Bidisha Kundu (3600 points) completed the podium.
In the women’s U20 pentathlon, Uttarakhand’s Jaskiran Kaur emerged victorious with 3272 points, ahead of Haryana’s Priya (3133 points) and Punjab’s Alfaz Kaur Grewal (3066 points).
Baranica’s record-breaking leap, however, remains the defining highlight of the championships so far. With Nitika of Madhya Pradesh and Blessy Kunjumon of Kerala both clearing 3.90m for silver and bronze respectively, the gap at the top is widening – and Baranica is the one pulling away.
As the National Indoor Athletics Championships continue, all eyes remain on the flying pole vaulter from Tamil Nadu. If her recent form is anything to go by, Baranica Elangovan is just getting started on her journey to even greater heights.
