India’s Harita Bhadra clinched the bronze medal in the women’s 200 metres at the Asian Games on Saturday, edging out Japan’s Ido Abigeirufuka by a mere 0.01 seconds in a photo finish.

Harita clocked 23.20 seconds to finish third, just ahead of the Japanese sprinter’s 23.21, in a thrilling finish at the athletics stadium.

Singapore’s Shanti Pereira won gold in a season’s best 22.78 seconds, while China’s Chen Yujie took silver in 22.93 seconds. India’s Unnathi Aiyappa Bolland finished sixth in 23.48 seconds.

The bronze was Harita’s maiden Asian Games medal, and it capped a fine evening for India’s sprinters on the track.

The wafer-thin margin made it one of the closest finishes of the athletics programme at the Games.

Harita balances her athletics career with running a business, a story that has drawn attention back home. Her bronze continues India’s steady progress in women’s sprinting, an area where the country has invested heavily in recent years.