Aichi-Nagoya, 29 September (H.S.): Indian athlete Dev Meena rewrote the national record in the men’s pole vault final at the 2026 Asian Games on Tuesday, clearing 5.50 metres to surpass his own previous mark and register a new personal best.

Meena’s previous national record stood at 5.46 metres, which he set earlier this year at the Inter-State Athletics Championships. The performance had also secured the qualifying standard for the Asian Games.

Around a month earlier, at the Federation Cup in Ranchi, Meena and fellow Indian pole vaulter Kuldeep Kumar had both cleared 5.45 metres to equal the national record. Meena has now moved the benchmark to 5.50 metres with his impressive clearance in the Asian Games final.

However, after clearing 5.50 metres, Meena was unable to clear 5.60 metres. Following three unsuccessful attempts at the height, his competition came to an end.

Kuldeep Kumar also featured in the final and finished 10th with a best clearance of 5.35 metres.

Earlier, at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, Meena narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing fourth with a best clearance of 5.30 metres.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar