High jump star Pooja suffers ligament injury, to miss most of season

India’s high jump sensation Pooja has been ruled out of the upcoming World University Games and Interstate Championships due to a ligament injury.

It has been reported that Pooja has suffered a Grade-2 ligament tear, which rules her out for most of the ongoing season.

Pooja’s coach Balwant Singh confirmed that the 19-year-old will likely be back in action only in October.

“Pooja injured her ankle last month. We are currently doing rehab. She will not be in good condition to take part in the World University or the Inter-State championships. We don’t want to rush her recovery. So she will try to come back for the Junior Nationals in October,” said Balwant.

Earlier this year, Pooja had claimed gold at the Asian Athletics Championships, in Gumi, South Korea. She registered a season-best jump of 1.89m to claim a stunning win. Her effort also broke her own Under-20 national record.

Before her, Bobby Aloysius was the only Indian woman to win a medal in high jump at the Asian Championships, securing gold in 2000 and silver in 2002.