Dutee Chand bags gold at National Open Athletics C'ship

Indian sprinter Dutee Chand swept aside a year of controversy by securing the gold medal in the women's 100 metre event of the 55th National Open Athletics Championship here on Thursday.

The 19-year-old sprinter from Odisha clocked 11.68 seconds to edge past rival Srabani Nanda, who finished second at the Kolkata Sports Authority of India (SAI) Centre.

However, the Railways athlete fell short of the Olympic qualifying mark of 11.32 seconds.

Chand was banned last year by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) after failing a hormone test.

However, the sprinter secured the right to race again in a landmark ruling questioning the validity of so-called gender tests around naturally high testosterone levels in female athletes.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in July cleared the sprinter by suspending the 'hyperandrogenism' rules, which may also be scrapped if the IAAF fails to provide evidence.