The Times of India Sports Awards (TOISA) returns for its eighth edition, celebrating the achievements and inspiring journeys of India’s finest athletes. The TOISA 2025 event will be held on March 21, 2026 in Lucknow, bringing together top sporting icons and rising stars of the country.This edition of the awards will honor performances in over 45 categories covering the assessment period from January 1 to December 31, 2025. Indian sport enjoyed a remarkable year, highlighted by outstanding performances at global and continental events.Track and field athletes from Uttar Pradesh have dominated the TOISA 2025 Athlete of the Year (Track and Field) nominations.Athletes from UP accounted for half of the nominations in both the men’s and women’s categories.In the men’s category, long-distance runner Gulvir Singh led the 2025 show, rewriting the record books in the 3000m, 5000m and 10,000m events. He won two gold medals at the Asian Championships in Gumi, South Korea, topping the 5,000m and 10,000m races. He set national records in both events, with his 5000m mark of 12:59.77 also becoming an Asian record.The second athlete from UP has been named javelin thrower. Sachin YadavThat impressed at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Sachin finished a creditable fourth with a personal best throw of 86.72m, ahead of Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, who was eighth. He also won a silver medal at the Asian Championships in South Korea, beating Pakistan’s Paris Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem.In the women’s category, two of the four nominees are from UP. Parul Chaudhary and Rupal Chaudhary.Parul has twice set the national record for the 3000m steeplechase at the world level. She first broke it at the Diamond League in Doha, finishing sixth against a world-class field. Weeks later, he improved his mark again at the Asian Championships in Gomi, where he won a silver medal, and later added another silver in the 5000m event.Rupal also won at the continental level in 2025. He won three medals, including two golds, at the Asian Championships in South Korea. The 21-year-old claimed silver in the 400m and played a key role in India’s gold in the women’s and 4x400m relay.Profiles of Uttar Pradesh athletes nominated in Athlete (Track and Field) of the Year categories:
Gulveer Singh
Gulveer SinghDate of Birth: 1st June 1998Place of Birth: Uttaravali, Uttar PradeshSports: Athletics (3000m, 5000m, 10,000m)Key achievements in 2025:Gomi Asian Championships: Gold (5000m – 13:24.77 CR), Gold (10,000m)Gulvir Singh enjoyed a sensational 2025 season, rewriting national records in several long-distance events — 3000m, 5000m and 10,000m. He emerged as a dominant force on the continental stage, winning gold in both the 5000m and 10,000m at the Asian Athletics Championships to become the reigning Asian champion.Gulver set a new national record in the 3000m at the Gyulai István Memorial, clocking an impressive 7:34.49 and bettering his previous mark of 7:38.26 set earlier in the year at the David Hemmery Valentine Invitational. In the 5000m, he became the first Indian to break the 13-minute barrier by registering 12:59.77 at the Boston University Terrier DMR Challenge – a performance that also stands as the Asian 5000m short track record. He continued his record-setting streak in the 10,000 meters, setting another national standard at The TEN in 27:00.22.
Sachin Yadav
Sachin YadavDate of Birth: 25 October 1999Place of Birth: Khekra, Uttar PradeshSports: Athletics (javelin throw)Key achievements in 2025:Tokyo World Championships: 4th (86.27m – PB)Gomi Asian Championships: Silver (85.16m)In 2025, Sachin Yadav enjoyed a successful season marked by personal bests and strong finishes on the international stage. He started the year by winning the gold medal at the National Games, setting a personal best and a record throw of 84.39m. Yadav then impressed at the Asian Athletics Championships, where he clinched silver with another personal best of 85.16m, just 1.24m behind Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem. He also competed in the inaugural Neeraj Chopra Classic, finishing just short of the podium with a fourth-place finish after a best throw of 82.33m. At the World Athletics Championships, Yadav qualified for the final with an effort of 83.67m in the qualification round and produced a personal best throw of 86.27m in the final, ultimately finishing fourth and missing out on a medal.
Parul Chaudhary (Getty Images)
Parul ChaudharyDate of Birth: 15 April 1995Place of Birth: Akulta, Uttar PradeshSports: Athletics (3000m Steeplechase, 5000m)Key achievements in 2025:Doha Diamond League – 6th – 9:13.39 NRGomi Asian Championships: Silver (3000m Steeplechase – 9:12.46 NR), Silver (5000m)In 2025, Parul Chaudhary had an outstanding season, rewriting the national record in the women’s 3000m steeplechase more than once at some of the sport’s biggest stages. Competing in one of athletics’ most demanding disciplines, she first broke the national mark at the Diamond League Doha, finishing a creditable sixth in 9:13.39 against a world-class field. Just weeks later, at the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea, Parul bettered her own record with a stunning 9:12.46 to win the silver medal. He capped off an extraordinary continental campaign by adding another silver in the 5000m event, highlighting his versatility and endurance and making 2025 one of the best seasons of his career.
Rupal ChaudhryDate of Birth: 23 December 2004Place of Birth: Shahpur Jainpur, Uttar PradeshSports: Athletics (400 meters)Key achievements in 2025:Gomi Asian Championships: Silver (400m), Gold (4x400m), Gold (4x400m Mixed)In 2025, young Rupal Chaudhary enjoyed a stellar year, headlined by a stellar performance at the Asian Athletics Championships. The 21-year-old returned home with three medals from the continental meet, including two golds – instrumental in India’s victories in the women’s 4x400m relay and 4x400m relay mixed. Individually, he also impressed by winning a silver medal in the 400m event. Rupal further demonstrated her growing stature on the world stage by representing India at the World Athletics Relays, where she participated in the mixed 4x400m relay.
