Team Fiji athletics rep Samuela Railoa missed the chance to be in the finals of the 400 metres event by .05 seconds at the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkimenstan.

Railoa ran a time of 49.55 seconds in the 400m semi-final.

The Ratu Kadavulevu School student finished third in the heat with a time of 49.58s beating fellow Oceania athletes Paul Wilson Nalau from Vanuatu and Athan Jon Arizanga of Guam to make the semifinal.

Railoa was unable to match his personal best time of 48.16s and was ranked 11th overall after the semifinal.

Fellow teammates and 400m sprinters Serenia Ragatu and Elenani Tinai failed to make it past the qualifying stages. Serenia clocked a time of 59.82s and Elenani managed a time of 59.78s.

The Adi Cakobau School students were also unable to match their personal best times.

In the men’s shot put Fiji’s Mustafa Falls was unable to match his personal best of 15.68m only managing a throw of 14.62m to be ranked 18th overall in the Asian Indoor Games. Khazakstans Ivan Ivanov won gold with a throw of 19.6m, India Tajinderpal Singh won silver with a throw of 19.26m and Korea’s Ilwoo Jung won bronze with a throw of 19.24m.-

FASANOC