Discus thrower Seema Antil qualifies for London Olympics

New Delhi, March 25 (IANS) India's female discus thrower Seema Antil qualified for the 2012 London Olympics after she achieved the 'A' qualifying standard with a throw of 62.60 metres at the University of California (Irvine) Open Championships.

According to information received here Sunday, Seema achieved the mark in her first attempt. Seema has been training in California for the last six months with coach Tony Ciarelli.

After achieving the qualifying target, Ciarelli didn't allow Seema to make any more attempts since she achieved the target in her first competition of the season.

"I am feeling very good, I feel I could have thrown the discus over 64m today but coach would like me to save those throws for the Olympic Games. I am now looking to keep improving and achieve my target of a medal at the Olympics," said Seema in a statement.

Seema, who is supported by Mittal Champions Trust, also thanked her sponsors.

"I am thankful to the Mittal Champions Trust for having faith in me and giving me the opportunity to train with the best coach in the world. It is because of them I have managed to hit a distance of 62m after seven years," she said.

Ciarelli was also happy with Seema's performance.

"I am happy that this (qualification) is over with and we can go into the next phase of our training programme," he said.