India, June 26 -- A national record holder at just 18, Uttar Pradesh athlete Anushka Yadav has a simple wish - to make the hammer throw match the popularity of javelin, which has a massive fan following in the country due to the exploits of two-time Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra.

Anushka smashed the women's hammer throw national record with an effort of 67.02m on an eventful opening day of the National Inter-State Championships here on Wednesday. She bettered the nine-year-old previous national record of 65.25m set in 2017 by Sarita Singh. "Not many people know hammer throw in India, but everybody knows javelin throw. I want people to know hammer throw just like javelin throw," Anushka, who hails from a farming family at Baleni village...