Long jumper Murali Sreeshankar is satisfied despite his early exit in the World Athletics Championships. Speaking in the mixed zone after failing to qualify for the final of the men’s event, Sreeshankar said that considering he was told that he would never jump again, it was quite a successful season for him.
Murali Sreeshankar had a career-threatening knee injury in 2024 and had gone under the knife in April last year. The athlete made his comeback in July 2025, just two months before the World Athletics Championships. He raked in impressive performances in competitions and qualified for the world event.
World Athletics Championships: Day 3 Highlights
However, competing in his third World Championships, Sreeshankar could only produce a best jump of 7.78m in his three attempts in the Group A qualification round. The performance saw him get knocked out of the race for the finals.
“8m jump was definitely on the cards. In the warm-ups I jumped over 8.10m, so I was very confident. But I was coming back from a long break, and I had to squeeze in everything in a very short amount of time. I am not disappointed but I would say that I was expecting an 8m jump and qualification into the final. But it is what it is and I am happy,” Murali Sreeshankar said after his event.
World Athletics Championships: Day 4 Schedule
Those who touched the automatic qualifying mark of 8.15m or at least the best 12 places across the two groups made it to the finals.
He has had just two jumps worse than Monday’s 7.78m since March 2022. Ironically, one of the two was a 7.74m during the qualification round of the 2023 edition of the showpiece, and now he has failed to qualify for the finals of a World Championships for the second consecutive time.
The 26-year-old had made it to the finals in the 2022 edition in Eugene, USA, finishing seventh.
World Athletics Championships: Full Coverage
Despite the poor result, Sreeshankar said that the 2025 season has been a blessing for him.
“This season has been a blessing. From being told that I won’t be able to jump, to perform on the biggest stage at the World Championships. So, I just wanted this season to be a preparatory one for the next season. I got the feel of the world stage again and I am really happy about it,” Sreeshankar said about his season.
The athlete said that he would be taking a long break, something that his coach has recommended after back-to-back events in the last three months. He will be building up for the Asian Games 2025, which will also be hosted in Nagoya, Japan.
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