New Delhi: The final day of the National Indoor Athletics Championships ended with high drama in the men’s 60m race, where Gurvinder Veer Singh won the gold medal and set a new national record. The race took an unexpected turn after favorite Animesh Kajur was disqualified, completely changing the result.Gurvinder Veer clocked 6.60 seconds to win gold in his first indoor race, beating the previous national indoor best of 6.67 seconds. The Athletics Federation of India (AFI), however, does not maintain an official list of national indoor records.
The spotlight was also on the chaotic start to the race, which saw three false starts. A third animesh led to Kajar’s disqualification, much to the crowd’s shock.Gurundravir admitted that he actually wanted to challenge Animesh, saying, “He (Animesh) got off to a false start. I thought that if he runs, I will run better because there will be a tough competition.”He even tried to convince the officials, he added, “so I was asking the race officials to let him run under protest.”Despite the disruption, Gurinder Vir remained focused. “No, my job was to run my own race. I was telling myself it was okay if I ran alone.”Explaining his approach, he said, “It’s a short distance, if someone overtakes you, you can’t catch them, nobody knows who will win, even a world champion can lose.” He added that a strong start is key: “Starting is important in the 60m and then running fast. I have a good start.”Reflecting on his journey, Gurvinder Veer revealed that he struggled mentally last year. “Last year, I also started with a national record. But later, I got discouraged… I became very negative. My timing was so bad. But, I am hoping to be a different Gurinder Veer this time.”In another event, Tamil Nadu’s G Regan won the pole vault with 5.30m but fell short of breaking the overall national record. “I just wanted to execute my plans, I’m a little disappointed because I couldn’t set the national record but I’m improving,” he said.
National Indoor Athletics Championship Results
- Men: 60m: Gurudevir Singh (Reliance) 6.60s, Lalu Prasad Bhoi (Odisha) 6.65s, Nusrat (Haryana) 6.71s.
- 400m: Mohammad Sanan (Reliance) 48.27 seconds, Mohammad Badusha (BSF) 49.83 seconds, Arin Eka (Odisha) 49.86 seconds.
- 1500m: Vinod Singh (Madhya Pradesh) 3:46.13s, Jagdish (Air Force) 3:50.11s, Sunil Yadav (Rajasthan) 3:50.56s.
- Triple Jump: Vimal Mukesh (Navy) 15.41m, Robinson S (Tamil Nadu) 14.67m, Naresh Rohidas (Odisha) 13.92m.
- Pole vault: Regan G (Tamil Nadu) 5.30m, Rambir Singh (Army) 4.85m, Baneesh Jacob (Railway) 4.55m.
- High jump: Swadhin Kumar Majhi (Odisha) 2.18m, Sarvesh Anil Kushere (Maharashtra) 2.15m, Dhireshil D (Maharashtra) 2.15m.
- Women: 60m: Harita Bhandra (Maharashtra) 7.32 seconds, Onathi Bolanda (Karnataka) 7.46 seconds, Trisha Nair (Maharashtra) 7.62 seconds.
- 400m: Kumari Saloninagar (Uttar Pradesh) 55.73 seconds, Sukhi Baski (Odisha) 55.67 seconds, Onathi Bolanda (Karnataka) 56.45 seconds.
- Triple Jump: Malala Anusha (JSW) 13.20m, Namisha Dima (JSW) 12.93m, Bhirbi Roy (West Bengal) 12.81m.
- High jump: Payal Jamud (Gujarat) 1.71m, Kavinna Ashwin (Tamil Nadu) 1.71m, Pramila Rajgarh (West Bengal) 1.68m.
