Harshita Jakhar powers Rajasthan to top of charts; Suhani Kumari shines for Bihar

Patna: Rajasthan endurance cyclist Harshita Jakhar, identified as a long-term prospect for support under the Target Asian Games Group (TAGG) Scheme after a successful outing in the Asian Junior Championships, claimed a double gold to share the limelight with Maharashtra swimmer Aditi Satish Hegde in the Khelo India Youth Games 2025 Bihar on Tuesday.

Harshita Jakhar’s twin gold effort in the Scratch Race and Time Trial (500m), her cousin Aditya Jakhar’s victory in the boys’ Scratch Race, and Mayank Chaudhary’s 10m Air Pistol gold placed Rajasthan at the top of the medal charts with six gold and two silver at the time of writing. Karnataka (5 gold, 9 silver, 3 bronze) and Maharashtra (5 gold, 6 silver, 9 bronze) were in close pursuit.

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Suhani Kumari shone for Bihar as the host state entered the medal charts with two silver medals in the velodrome at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Complex in New Delhi. She claimed a silver medal in the Scratch Race (7.5km), finishing less than half a second behind Harshita Jakhar.

Hailing from Saran district, she then teamed up with fellow Khelo India athletes from Siwan, Amrita Kumari and Shalini Kumari, in the Team Sprint (3 laps) but could not stop the trio from neighbouring Jharkhand – Sabina Kumari, Sanju Kumari, and Sindhu Lata Hembrom – from winning gold by a margin of just 1.323 seconds.

There could be no denying that Harshita Jakhar was the star attraction of the day. Following her selection for support under the TAGG Scheme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, she had emerged as the cyclist to beat. The manner in which she handled the pressure and focused on delivering quality performances was indeed commendable.

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She won the Scratch race, a gruelling event raced over 7.5km, clocking 11:50.973 and doing enough to edge Suhani Kumari (11:51.558) to second place and Akanksha Mhetre (Maharashtra) to third in 11:51.649. Later, she won the Time Trial (500m), ahead of Akanksha Mhatre (Maharashtra) and S Thabitha (Tamil Nadu).

Aditi Satish Hegde, who won the 800m Freestyle gold on Monday, added two more precious metals to her collection by winning the 400m Freestyle (4:32.87) and 100m Butterfly (1:04.73) events on Tuesday.

Telangana enjoyed a good day in the BIPARD swimming pool in Gaya, winning three gold medals through Varshith Dhulipidi (boys’ 400m Individual Medley), Suhas Preetham Mylari (boys’ 100m Backstroke), and Sri Nithya Sagi (girls’ 100m Backstroke).

Gujarat’s girl judokas Divya Makwana (44kg class) and Khusbu Darjada (57kg) earned the first gold medals for the state, showcasing its emergence as a hub for the sport. Divya Makwana beat Rahi Ghelani in an all-Gujarat final. Chandan Kumar Senma’s bronze in the boys’ 55kg completed a good day for the western state.

Harshit’s smooth sailing to the boys’ Judo 73kg title helped Haryana heave a sigh of relief as the team finally made it to the list of states with gold medals in the Khelo India Youth Games 2025 Bihar. A powerhouse in Khelo India events, its athletes had won two silver and a bronze thus far in this edition.