Asian wins will give athletes confidence
What augurs well for the AFI is that the championship's high can be credited to a bunch of youngsters. There were medallists in their late teens. High-jumper Pooja, 18, who comes from a modest background, won gold with what will stand as a national record in the U20 group. Another 18-year-old, Abinaya Rajarajan, was in the 4x100 m women's relay team. Sprint sensation Animesh Kujur, 21, has been notching up records in 200 m. Quarter-miler Rupal Chaudhary (silver medallist) and long-jumper Shaili Singh are both 20; gold medallist heptathlete Nandini Agasara is 21.
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Hindustan Times
17 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Stuck in a loop: India's stagnant marathon scene
Mumbai: Three decades into his triple jump world record of 18.29m from the 1995 World Championships, Jonathan Edwards had this to say to BBC this month about it remaining untouched: 'I don't think it's a good sign for athletics as a sport that you have a record that stands for 30 years.' File image of Man Singh, winner of this year's New Delhi Marathon. (Mumbai Marathon) Every word of that sentence could also well apply to the men's marathon national record in India. Except, that mark goes much further back. The late Shivnath Singh's marathon national record of 2:12:00 set in 1978 in Jalandhar still stands the test of time. As per Athletics Federation of India (AFI) data, it remains the longest standing national mark, with PT Usha's 400m hurdles record of 1984 also equalled in 2023. Two of the country's prominent marathon races, in Mumbai and New Delhi, had Indian winners clock timings around the 2:17 and 2:15 mark. It's pretty much where India's male marathoners have been stuck over the last five years, after Gopi T came close to the national mark when he clocked 2:13:39 at the 2019 Seoul Marathon. In an event where global runners are constantly pushing the threshold – Kelvin Kiptum set the current world record of 2:00:35 in 2023 before his untimely death aged 24 – the Indians have stagnated for quite a while. 'For almost a decade, Indian marathon has been stuck in a loop – one that hovers around the 2:15 mark,' said Nitendra Singh Rawat, the 2016 Rio Olympian with a personal best of 2:16:05. A glaring ailment to that loop not breaking for a bigger leap, concur athletes and coaches, is the lack of a core group of marathoners training together. Surinder Singh Bhandari, India's renowned distance runner turned coach, recalled having a group of 10-12 runners training just under him between 2014 to 2016. Three of them – Gopi, Kheta Ram and Rawat – qualified for the Rio Games where the first two clocked PBs in the 2:15s. For last year's Paris Olympics, no Indian marathoner made the cut. This year, AFI added to the decentralisation by doing away with long-duration national camps. 'Nowadays, marathoners are scattered. And camps have also been done away with. For long distances, training in one place under one coach with a proper group helps,' said Bhandari. 'When the three of us trained together, we pushed each other,' said Kheta Ram (PB 2:15:26) of the Rio trio. 'Now most train on their own.' Rawat said: 'Ideally, 10-12 runners should be identified, supported and clubbed into a group to train together. The focus should be on a group, rather than individuals.' That group, according to both Olympic marathoners, would also benefit from a lengthy training block outside India. Both cited the example of Gulveer Singh, who rewrote the 5,000m and 10,000m national records last year, training in USA's Colorado Springs where India's other distance runners including Avinash Sable were also based. Sable, currently out injured, was later based in Bengaluru. 'We used to have weekly practice plans. Maybe in a country with better marathoners, they make monthly programmes. We need to go out and understand such things,' said Kheta Ram. AFI has, over the last few years, sent India's race walkers and relay teams for training blocks abroad. 'We need to spend 5-6 months training with runners in the 2:05-2:10 region, no matter the country. We have to observe the training methods and technology advancements of those better groups and countries,' Rawat said. Marathoners of those better countries have been aided by advancements in shoes and running equipment, which has not only challenged the world benchmark frequently but also upped qualification standards. At the 2019 Mumbai Marathon, Rawat's timing of 2:15.52 was enough to clear the 2019 World Championships qualifying cut. For next month's Tokyo Worlds, that cut is 2:06:30. The fast-evolving super shoes may have changed the pace of marathon running, yet it hasn't translated to faster times in India. 'Shoes have made a big impact overall,' said Kheta Ram. 'For Indians, they can be expensive. Some can afford it, but even for them it hasn't impacted timings to that extent.' 'In India,' said Bhandari, 'athletes can win medals and rewards with a timing of 2:15 or so. And most are happy to be in that comfort zone.' It comes back to that loop, where Indian marathon lies in danger of retreating. 'We will have to get out of that loop soon,' said Rawat.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- The Hindu
Fresh off another world record, Duplantis ready to push boundaries again
Fresh off yet another world record mark and with a third straight world gold in his sights, pole vaulter Mondo Duplantis is ready to push the boundaries of his sport again. The gravity-defying Swede broke the world record for a 13th time on Tuesday, clearing 6.29 metres at the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest, and will be one of the biggest attractions at next month's World Championships in Tokyo. 'The natural next step would be 6.30. And I think that would be a huge barrier to cross for me and for the sport in general,' Duplantis told reporters on Thursday. 'I'll be there soon. And then I guess naturally then I'll just keep looking forward whenever I'm able to cross that, hopefully in the near future. As far as the limit, I don't really think about it.' Duplantis first put the world on notice five years ago as a 20-year-old when he cleared 6.17 for the first time, breaking Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie's previous record mark set in 2014. At the Tokyo worlds, which run from September 13-21, he will revisit the site of his Olympic breakthrough, where he won his first of two Games golds in the COVID-delayed 2021 Games. Also read | AFI asks eligible females to undergo SRY test before World Championships in Tokyo Deprived of a crowd amid public health restrictions due to the pandemic four years ago, Duplantis is eager to return with the full backing of his fans. 'I haven't been this excited about a competition maybe ever,' said Duplantis, who plans to compete in the Silesia Diamond League meet on Saturday and the top-flight circuit's finale in Zurich later this month. 'It's going to be such an amazing stadium when it's more full and has the energy of the crowd. I think that definitely should give me a good push.' Related Topics Mondo Duplantis
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) tells women athletes to undergo SRY gene test
Representational Image of a Track field. Bengaluru: With the World Athletics Council approving new regulations for athletes to compete in the women's category for world ranking competitions, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has informed top athletes and coaches that all female athletes who make the grade should undergo 'SRY gene test' to be eligible to compete in next month's World Championships to be held in Tokyo. 'All female athletes who meet the qualification standards for the World Athletics Championships should undergo the SRY gene test in consultation with the Athletics Federation of India,' AFI said in a communication to the athletes and coaches. 'All concerned are requested to ensure compliance with the above requirement at the earliest, failing which the concerned athlete shall not be permitted to compete in the female category,' Shailesh Kumar, chairman of AFI's medical commission, said in the letter. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! AFI sources told TOI that as the final list of Indian women athletes who will qualify will be known only at the end of the qualifying period on Aug 24, the tests will be ongoing, starting with those who have already made the grade or who are on the verge of making the cut. 'All athletes have been informed about the requirement and most of these samples will be tested at the National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTL) in New Delhi,' they said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Highest Earning College Majors—2025 Edition Best Paying Degrees | Search Ads Learn More Undo Asked if the samples would be sent abroad, the sources said NDTL is equipped to conduct the required tests. While Parul Chaudhary (3000m steeplechase) and Priyanka (35km race walk) have made the cut, Annu Rani (javelin throw) has more or less confirmed her berth through the world ranking quota. Another five athletes — Ankita (3000m steeplechase), Seema (10,000m), Shaili Singh (long jump), Vithya Ramraj (400m hurdles) and Pooja (high jump) — have kept their hopes alive and will look to give their best in the Inter-State meet beginning in Chennai on Aug 20. World Athletics announced the new test on July 30 and said the new regulations will come into effect on Sept 1, 2025 and will be applied to the Worlds that begin on Sept 13. 'All athletes wishing to compete in the female category at the World Championships are required to undergo a once-in-a-lifetime test for the SRY gene — a reliable proxy for determining biological sex,' the world body had said. Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
