Nagoya, Sept. 25 -- Baranica Elangovan on Friday scripted history by becoming the first Indian to win a pole vault medal at the Asian Games, clinching a bronze, while Gulveer Singh also entered into record books, becoming the first track and field athlete from the country to achieve podium finishes twice in 10,000m race with a silver here.

Shot putter Manpreet Kaur then redeemed herself after years of toil, winning a bronze, as India bagged three medals on the third day of athletics competition.

India's medals tally in athletics has swelled to five, with the two of them coming on Thursday.

Baranica shared the bronze with Ivanova Polina of Kazakhstan after both soared over 4.15m and there was nothing to separate the two in the countback in a rare joint award of a medal in a major tournament.

Both cleared 3.65m, 3.85m and 4m in their respective first attempts. Then, both of them needed second attempts to clear 4.15m but failed to rise above 4.25m in three attempts.

"This is incredible. I'm really happy that I could able to bring a medal for my country. It's my dream actually to write history and I did it today," the 29-year-old from Tamil Nadu said.

"I never thought of giving up because my coach made me mentally prepared for everything," said Baranica about her coach Milber Bertrand Russel who was also present here.

She said she did not believe it when Sindhushree G, the other Indian in the fray, told her that I had won a bronze.

"I didn't know actually, I was checking. Sindhushree was

telling me that I have won a bronze. I didn't believe, I said I need to check, re-check.

I checked it twice, thrice and then only I got to know about the medal."

"I didn't believe it actually, I was telling my coach, this was the medal, there was a display and I was asking him to check, how come I didn't know like that. I was really excited after seeing that, but also not believing."

Meanwhile, Gulveer clinched a silver to become the first Indian to win to medals in 10,000m in the Asian Games history.

The 28-year-old Gulveer, who had won a bronze in the same event in the last edition China, clocked 28 minute 29.38 seconds to take the second spot behind defending champion Birhanu Balew of Bahrain, who claimed the gold in 28 minutes 27.51 seconds.

Albert Kipto, also from Bahrain, completed the podium with a time of 28:34.18.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.