Khelo India University Games: Race walker Poonam Kumawat from Rajasthan wins gold

Race walker Poonam Kumawat, representing Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Rajasthan won the gold medal in the women’s 20 km event at the 3rd Khelo India University Games here on Thursday.

Race walker Poonam Kumawat, representing Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Rajasthan won the gold medal in the women’s 20 km event at the 3rd Khelo India University Games here on Thursday.

Poonam Kumawat poses with her gold medal in Lucknow. (Pic by SAI)

She has become an admirer of the arrangements made for these Games in Lucknow and stated that she never received any kind of support from the Rajasthan government.

“Our government does not provide any assistance to athletes, but the Uttar Pradesh government has made some excellent arrangements for the players. Every athlete is happy with it. This is my first University Games, and I am delighted to be here,” said Poonam.

“No, I don’t receive any kind of support. Although I do receive a scholarship, it hasn’t been provided regularly since 2016. There is no initiative from the government’s end. My university provides cash rewards to those who win gold medals,” she said.

A student of MA final year at Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Poonam completed the 20 km race on the track of Guru Govind Singh Sports College in 1 hour, 44 minutes, and 1.63 seconds. Payal from Punjab University secured the second position with a time of 1 hour, 45 minutes, and 23.38 seconds.

A resident of Bhilwara in Rajasthan, Poonam, who currently practices in Jaipur, wasn’t happy with her performance. “My performance was slow. I couldn’t achieve the timing as per my training. The timing that I was aiming for deteriorated right from the beginning, and I failed to recover from it.”

The national record in the 20 km race walk is held by Meerut’s Priyanka Goswami, who set the record during the National Race Walk Championship in 2021 with a time of 1 hour, 28 minutes, and 45 seconds. When asked about her goal of reaching that time, Poonam said: “I have to work harder to reach that level. I am putting in the effort.”

Poonam said, “I belong to Bhilwara district. My father is a government lab technician and also does farming. I am the only sportsperson in my family, and I have been passionate about race walking since my school days. I couldn’t participate in athletics while pursuing my bachelor’s degree. Then, I came to Jaipur and started practicing.”

Poonam mentioned that winning the medal in the race walk was a big achievement for her. “I took part in several race walking championships earlier, but never won a medal. I also took part in the All India West Zone University Games, where my timing was 1 hour 44 minutes. My personal best is 1 hour 41 minutes.”

However, Poonam said that she was aiming to participate in the Inter-University Championship, which will be held in Bhubaneswar from June 17. “I have to participate in Bhubaneswar and, as far as my aim is concerned, I want to represent India at the international level.”