An old video of Indian athlete and hurdler Jyothi Yarraji winning a race is viral online with the false claim that she won the gold medal at the women's 100 m hurdle at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
BOOM found that the claims are false and the video is from the Asian Athletics Championships held in Bangkok, Thailand, from 12-16 July, 2023.
Jyothi Yarraji, born in 1999, is one of India's most promising athletes participating in the Asian Games. Hailing from Vizag, Andhra Pradesh, Yarraji is a national record holder in the women's 100 m hurdle category. She is expected to begin competing at the Asian Games from September 30 onward, participating in the women's 200m and women's 100m hurdles.
The 2-minute long video was shared by singer Asha Bhosle's official X (formerly Twitter) account with the caption, "Heartiest congratulations to Yaraaji from Andhra Pradesh for winning the Gold for 100mts hurdles at the Asian Games."
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
BOOM also received the same claim on our WhatsApp Helpine (7700906111).
FACT CHECK
BOOM found that the video is from July 13, 2023, when Yarraji won the gold medal at the Asian Athletics Championships and is unrelated to the ongoing Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
We looked at the video closely and found a banner in the background on the 1:32 mark reading 'Asian Athletics Championships 2023'. The Indian flag has been placed on the top right of this video to conceal the logo of the Asian Athletics Championships.
Below is a comparison between the logos of the Asian Athletics Championships and the Asian Games.
The Asian Athletics Championship was a five day event in July that included events related only to athletics such as javelin throw, hurdle races, long jump, shot put, and relays. The Asian Games, on the other hand, are two weeks long and include events related to athletics as well as other sports such as swimming, shooting, cricket, etc. India clinched its first gold at the Asian Games after Rudranksh Patil, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, and Divyansh Panwar won the men's 10 m rifle team event.
We also found a post from the Reliance Foundation Youth Sports' official Instagram account that congratulated Yarraji for her win. The post was uploaded on July 13 and was also shared on Yarraji's account.
The caption mentions that the video is from the official YouTube channel of the Asian Athletics Championships.
The official website of the Asian Athletics Championships also shared the participants' individual scores and ranking during the women's 100 m final.
Click here to view.
We also looked up the Asian Games' official website and found that competitions under athletics were yet to begin; the first event was scheduled for September 29.
Click here to view.
We also found a Facebook post by Yarraji's coach, James Hillier, shared on September 26. The post mentioned how Yarraji was still on her way to Hangzhou for the Asian Games.
The caption read, "Let the games begin 🇨🇳 En route to Hangzhou for the Asian Games. Good luck to all of Team India 🇮🇳 and to Team Hillier @amlan_borgohain & @jyothi_yarraji_."