Indians aim for best-ever haul in athletics AT C'Wealth Games

The missing star power of the likes of Usain Bolt might have undermined the blue riband status of track and field events in the Commonwealth Games but it promises to be an enthralling affair with home athletes like PT Usha-protege Tintu Luka gearing up to help the country their best ever show in the mega event.

The track and field events begin tomorrow at the showpiece Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium with two medal events in women's javelin throw final, men's 5,000m race final and para sports women's shot put final.

Other events tomorrow are 100m race (men and women) heats, women's 400m race heats, men's shot put preliminary round and women's para sports 100m race heats.

India have won just nine track and field medals, including a gold won by 'Flying Sikh' Milkha Singh in men's quarter mile or 440 yards race in Cardiff, Wales in 1958.

But this time the country, which is fielding a 110-strong squad, including 52 women, the largest in their history, can look forward to at least six.

In 2006 Melbourne Games, India won two silver -- Seema Antil in women's discus throw and women's 4X400 relay.

"This time we have the chance to have the best medal haul in our Commonwealth Games history. We are aiming for six to eight medals. It is a very tough world-class competition in athletics as competitors from Jamaica, Kenya, Great Britain, Australia, South Africa are taking part," Athletics Federation of India Lalit Bhanot said.

India are fielding nine athletes in the men's 100m led by Abdul Najib Qureshi while the women's sprint will have eight runners from the country tomorrow with S Geetha and HM Jyothi spearheading the challenge.

They will have a tough task to qualify for the semifinals not to speak of the final with the field still strong for them despite the pull out of some big names.

Historically more than 60 Commonwealth Games champions --both male and female -- have also won Olympic gold, and despite the pull-out of the likes of Bolt, Asafa Powell, Philip Idowu, the Delhi Games will still see 10 of the gold medallists at 2009 World Championships in Berlin.

Jamaican Bolt, the biggest name in athletics, cited a back problem as the reason for his absence while former 100m world record holder Asafa Powell said the the competition came too late in the year.

In the absence of Bolt and Powell in the 100m, European silver medallist Mark Lewis-Francis of England will be the favourite while Jamaica will look to Oshane Bailey.

Africans are set to dominate the 5,000m with Kenyan former world champion Eliud Kipchoge in the field alongside Mark Kiptoo, who has clocked 12:53.46 this year.