The second Indian Grand Prix, organised by the Tamil Nadu Athletic Association (TNAA) under the aegis of the Athletic Federation of India (AFI), will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.
Chief guest Adille Sumariwalla, vice president — World Athletics, will flag off the competition.
Top athletes from across the country, as well as athletes from the Indian camp, will be competing for the honours in nine events: 200m, 400m, 400m Hurdles, 1500m, 5000m, pole vault, triple jump, shot put, and javelin throw.
The competition is one of the selection trials for this year’s Paris Olympics. There are a total of four Grand Prix competitions, and the first one has already taken place in Bengaluru.
Triple-jumper Abdulla Aboobacker, 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games (CWG) silver-medallist and 2023 Asian Athletics Championships gold-medallist, will be a prominent name to watch out for.
Rosy Meena, who holds the National record, Pavithra Venkatesh, and Baranica Elangovan in the women’s pole vault, Santhosh and K. Avinash in the men’s 200m and 400m, and Mohammed Salahuddin in the men’s triple jump are some of the elite Tamil Nadu athletes participating in the competition.
“I think our Tamil Nadu athletes will perform well. That too, newly-laid track will be helpful for them to give a better performance,” said TNAA secretary C. Latha.