Parul Chaudhary delays finishing kick but still ends up with national record; Gulveer nails perfect last lap for gold in 5000m

Indian Express

4 days ago

Indian middle-distance runners continued their domination at the ongoing Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea, as Gulveer Singh won gold in the men's 5000m race with a competition record timing of 13:24.77s and steeplechaser Parul Chaudhary rewrote her national record in women's 3000m steeplechase to clinch silver.
One of the best endurance runners in Asia, Parul, rewrote the national record twice in the space of two weeks. Earlier this month, Parul participated in the Doha Diamond League. She clocked 9:13.39 to break her previous national record, competing against a field that included Olympic champion Winfred Yavi of Brunei and Olympic bronze medallist Faith Cherotich of Kenya.
On Friday, Parul clocked 9:12.46 to claim the second spot behind 2022 World Champion Norah Jeruto of Kazakhstan, who clocked 9:10.46 and claimed the gold medal.
When asked about rewriting the national record, Parul said that was the target she had in her mind before the event. 'I wanted to rewrite the national record. I knew the 2022 3000m steeplechase World Champion Norah Jeruto was here and she would run a fast race,' Parul told the reporters after her medal.
It was a race where the top three were decided from the first whistle, with Jeruto, Parul, and Daisy Jepkemei of Kazakhstan being the prime contenders for the podium spots.
Jeruto and Jepkemei are both Kenya-born Kazakhs.
Jeruto took the lead and held on to it till the end to win the title, while Parul started behind both Jeruto and Jepkemei. After the first 400m, it was clear that no one was catching Jeruto, and then Parul in the second place. The Indian tried to cover some distance in the last lap, but Jeruto finished well before her.
'My strategy was to go along with Norah, but she started very fast. I think I should have picked the race a little earlier and covered more gap in the last lap, but I am happy with the result,' Parul said.
The 30-year-old athlete has been on a constant improvement graph in the 3000m steeplechase, shaving off 26 seconds since 2022 in her personal best timings. Parul had a personal best of 9:38.09 in 2022 and improved by 14 seconds, clocking 9:24.29 at the heats of the 2023 World Athletics Championships, and the next day in the final, she clocked 9:15.31, further improving her timing by nine seconds. She failed to go anywhere close to her personal best in 2024, clocking her season best at the 2024 Paris Olympics with 9:23.39. In 2025, she ran two races and improved the national record twice, indicating a promising upcoming season.
Parul, who qualified for the World Championships 2025 earlier in Doha by breaching the qualifying mark of 9:18.00, will be participating in the 5000m final tomorrow.
It looked like Thai runner Kieran Tuntivate might stop Gulveer from doing a gold medal double at the Asian Athletics Championships, but the Indian athlete maintained his composure and produced a strong last lap to win the gold medal of the men's 5000m event, clocking 13:24.77s and setting the new competition record.
Currently the fastest Asian athlete in both 5000m and 10,000m events, Gulveer is having a stellar 2025, breaking multiple national records and now winning two gold medals at the continental showpiece. When asked what his target was for the event, Gulveer said,' The target was to get gold in 10000m and not care about timing in the 5000m. I am happy that I won the gold medal in both events,' Gulveer said after winning the second medal.
Gulveer started a little slow in the race but took the outside lane after the first 400m to enter the leading pack. He continued in the fifth position for the majority of the race before coming in medal position in the last 1200m. However, it was the spectacular last kick in the final lap when he distanced himself from the Japanese runners Nagiya Mori (bronze medallist) and Ketia Satoh (fourth position) and made sure that Tuntivate (silver medallist) didn't get the better of him.
Gulveer, who trains at Colorado Springs in the United States under the tutelage of Scott Simmons, wants to focus on the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, later this year. 'My training this year has been good, and focus is going to be on the World Championships,' said Gulveer.
The Athlete from Uttar Pradesh has already booked his World Championships berth in the 5000m event and will be looking to secure the same in the 10,000m event.
India (Total Medals): 18 (8 gold, 7 silver, 3 bronze)
Rank in Medal Tally– 2nd
Medals won on Day 4-
Gulveer Singh- 5000m- Gold
Pooja- High Jump- Gold
Nandini Agasara- Heptathlon- Gold
Parul Chaudhary- 3000m Steeplechase- Silver