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Tirunesh Dibaba is an Ethiopian athlete who competes in long-distance track events and international road races. She has won three Olympic track gold medals, five World Championship track gold medals, four individual World Cross Country (WCC) adult titles, and one individual WCC junior title. Tirunesh was the 5,000 metres world record holder until 2020 when her compatriot Letesenbet Gidey set a new world record. She is nicknamed the "baby-faced destroyer."
Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha is an Indian sports administrator and retired track and field athlete. Usha was born in Koothali near Perambra in Kozhikode district, Kerala. She grew up in Payyoli. Usha has been associated with Indian athletics since 1979. She has won 4 gold medals and 7 silver medals in the Asian Games. She is often associated as the "Queen of Indian track and field".
Shiny Kurisingal Wilson is a retired Indian athlete. She has been a National Champion in 800 metres for 14 years. Shiny Abraham Wilson represented India more than 75 times in international competition. She holds the added distinction of representing Asia in four World Cups. She is also perhaps the only athlete to have taken part in six Asian Track & Field Meets in a row beginning 1985 in Jakarta. During this period she won seven gold, five silver and two bronze medals in the Asian competitions. She collected a total of 18 gold and two silver medals from the seven South Asian Federation (SAF) Meets she has competed.
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Preeja Sreedharan is an Indian long-distance runner. She holds the national records in both the 10,000 metres and 5000 metres disciplines, which she set en route to the gold and silver medals at 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. Sreedharan was conferred with the Arjuna Award, India's second highest sporting honour by the central government in 2011.
India has a history of sports dating back to the Vedic period. Cricket is the most popular spectator sport; it generates the highest television viewership, with the Indian Premier League (IPL) being the most-followed league in the country. Football has also gained popularity, with the Indian Super League (ISL) being the highest level of domestic football, and the national team winning multiple gold medals at the Asian and South Asian Games. Additional football accomplishments include India having reached the Groupstage of the 1960 Olympics, qualified for the 1950 FIFA World Cup, and won the SAFF Championship. Other sports include kabaddi, badminton, tennis, and athletics, with kho-kho becoming the fourth-most viewed sport. India has also had success in field hockey, winning the World Cup and multiple medals in the Olympic Games. Sports such as golf, rugby, boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, motorsport, wrestling, and basketball are featured throughout the country.
Mercy Kuttan is a former Indian track and field athlete. She was the first Indian woman long jumper to cross six meters. In 1989, Mercy received Arjuna Award for her contribution to the Indian athletics.
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In India, the sport of athletics was introduced during the period of the British Raj. The sport is governed at national level by the Athletics Federation of India, which was formed in 1946. Despite its large population, few Indian athletes have won a medal in a global or major championship. This began to change in the 21st century, when Indians started taking greater interest in athletics more generally and improved facilities for the sport began to be built at a local level. At a continental level, it has been among the more successful Asian nations, though some distance behind China and Japan.
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Lalita Babar is an Indian long-distance runner. She was born in a small village in the Satara district, Maharashtra. She predominantly competes in the 3000 metres steeplechase and is the current Indian national record holder and the reigning Asian Champion in the same event.
Avinash Mukund Sable is an Indian track and field athlete who specializes in 3000 metres steeplechase. He holds the national record of 8:11.20, set at the 2022 Commonwealth Games where he won the silver medal. It was the ninth time he had set the national record.
Nadia Battocletti is an Italian female middle- and long-distance runner. She won the gold medal for the 5000 metres at the 2021 European Under-23 Championships. Battocletti earned four individual gold medals in the U20 and U23 age groups at the European Cross Country Championships. She is the Italian record holder for the indoor 3000 metres and 5 km road race.
Kamalpreet Kaur is an Indian athlete from Punjab. She is the first Indian woman to breach the 65m barrier in discus throw. She is supported by GoSports Foundation through the Rahul Dravid Athlete Mentorship Programme. Her best performance came when she finished 6th in discus throw at Tokyo 2020.
References
- ↑ Vally Sathyabhama. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved on 2016-01-24.
- ↑ "Official Website of Athletics Federation of India: NATIONAL RECORDS as on 21.3.2009". Athletics Federation of INDIA. Archived from the original on 5 August 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2009.
- ↑ "Indian Championships and Games". gbrathletics.com. Retrieved 6 October 2009.
