 Afsal at the 2022 Asian Games | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Mohammed Afsal Pulikkalakath | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality |  Indian | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 3 February 1996 (age 29) Palappuram, Ottapalam, Palakkad, Kerala, India | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Military career | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Allegiance | India | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Branch |  Indian Air Force | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Rank | Junior Warrant Officer | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and field | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | 800 metres | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | 1:44.93 NR (2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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JWO Mohammed Afsal Pulikkalakath (born 3 February 1996) is an Indian middle-distance runner who specializes in the 800 metres. He rose to prominence after winning the silver medal in the 800 metres event at the 2022 Asian Games.[1] He also holds the national record in the 800 metres with a time of 1:44.93, set in July 2025 in Poznań, Poland.[2] This performance marked a milestone in Indian athletics, as he became the first Indian athlete to break the 1:45 barrier in the 800 metres.
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Afsal has been coached since 2021 by Ajith Markose, head coach of the Reliance Foundation Endurance Program.[3] Under Markose’s guidance, he showed steady progress, became an Asian Games medalist and went on to break the national record twice, including surpassing the world-class benchmark of sub-1:45 in the 800 metres.[4] Earlier in his career, Afsal was coached by P. G. Manoj, a physical education teacher at Parali Higher Secondary School in Palakkad, during his school days.[5]