Shaya Shafeeu and Yusuf Naik Wajeeh from the Track and Field Association have been crowned the best female and male athletes of the 35th National Athletics Championship, which concluded yesterday.

Both athletes delivered standout performances during the tournament, with Shaya shattering the national women's shot put record and Naik setting a new record in the men's high jump.

Shaya set the new national shot put record with a throw of 10.20 meters, improving on her own previous record of 9.80 meters established at last year's championship. She also claimed a gold medal in the discus throw event. Meanwhile, Naik cleared a height of 1.91 meters to break his previous high jump record of 1.88 meters from last year. In addition to his high jump gold, Naik secured a silver medal in the triple jump event with a distance of 12.25 meters—finishing behind Mohamed Jailam Waleed who took gold at 12.68 meters, and ahead of Eesa Shafeeu who took bronze at 12.10 meters. Naik also took home a bronze medal in the long jump event.

The championship also featured stellar performances from the country's top runners. Maldives' fastest sprinter, Hassan Saaid, dominated the track by sweeping gold medals in the 100-meter, 200-meter, and 400-meter sprints. In the middle-distance events, Fasoocha Ahmed secured gold in both the women's 800-meter and 1500-meter races, while Hussain Riza claimed gold in the men's 800-meter and 1500-meter categories. Dhivehi Sifainge Club (DSC) emerged as the champion club in both the men's and women's divisions.