India, Sept. 27 -- All season, Ancy Sojan had been a picture of consistency. From meet to meet as well as jumps within them. On Sunday, at a rain-swept Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium, the favourite in the competition almost had the Asian Games women's long jump gold medal around her neck.

Then the last jump twist-in-the-tail that long jumps have witnessed in the past struck. And China's Huang Yingying took it away. By two centimetres.

Heading to Aichi-Nagoya, Ancy's focus wasn't just on upgrading her silver medal from 2023 Hangzhou, the 25-year-old was even determined to become the first Indian woman to touch 7 metres. After all, Ancy had set a new national mark of 6.88m, erasing a 22-year record in the season.

For much of Su...