‘This is my style’: Kerala’s Ancy Sojan hits back at hair, jewellery trolls after missing Asian Games gold by 2cm

Kerala's long jumper Ancy Sojan narrowly missed out on winning gold at the Asian Games, finishing second by just two centimetres. The 25-year-old from Nattika in Thrissur jumped 6.53 metres in the fifth round of the women's long jump final in Nagoya, but China's Huang Yingying edged her out with a jump of 6.55 metres. Instead of focusing on her almost-gold performance, some social media users began criticising Ancy's hairstyle, jewellery, makeup and accessories, questioning whether her style had affected her jumping.

In response, Ancy said firmly, "This is my style; nobody needs to interfere." Breaking Anju Bobby George's 22-year-old national long jump record earlier this year with a jump of 6.88 metres, Ancy remains confident that her unique style is a source of her comfort and confidence, not a distraction. The Kerala State Athletics Association has backed Ancy with a "Stand With Ancy" campaign and vowed to take action against the online abuse.

Despite missing gold by just two centimetres, Ancy returned home with a silver medal and India's national record, determined not to alter her style because of social media trolls.