NEW DELHI: India’s middle-distance runner Mohammed Afsal scripted historical past on Friday by breaking the long-standing males’s 800m nationwide file on the UAE Athletics Grand Prix in Dubai. The 29-year-old clocked a powerful 1:45.61s to surpass the earlier file of 1:45.65s set by Jinson Johnson in 2018.Afsal’s efficiency earned him a second-place end on the World Athletics Continental Tour bronze-level meet, held on the Dubai Police Stadium.He was narrowly edged out by Kenya’s Nicholas Kiplagat, who received the race with a time of 1:45.38.Go Past The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Whereas Afsal’s timing fell simply in need of the 2025 World Athletics Championships computerized qualification mark of 1:44.50, it marked a major enchancment in his private greatest and reaffirmed his standing as considered one of India’s high middle-distance athletes. The Kerala athlete had earlier clinched a silver medal on the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Video games with a time of 1:48.43.In the meantime, one other Indian nationwide file holder, Animesh Kujur, continued his nice type by profitable the lads’s 200m in 20.45 seconds. Though barely slower than his record-breaking 20.40 run on the 2025 Federation Cup, it was sufficient to safe gold in Dubai. Amlan Borgohain, the previous nationwide file holder, completed fifth with a timing of 21.08 seconds.The meet provided a promising outlook for Indian athletics because the nation’s high runners construct momentum forward of an important worldwide season.