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Amethi’s Abhishek wins first medal for India at Asian Athletics C’Ship
A resident of Poore Suklan, post Dahiyawa in Amethi, Pal clocked 29:33.26 seconds to finish third in the men’s 10,000m event.
LUCKNOW It’s a first for India as well as for Abhishek Pal of Amethi at the Asian Athletics Championship in Bangkok on Wednesday evening as the long-distance runner not only won his first international medal in the senior category but also became the first Indian to win a medal at this year’s prestigious event.
A resident of Poore Suklan, post Dahiyawa in Amethi, Pal clocked 29:33.26 seconds to finish third in the men’s 10,000m event. His compatriot and Meerut’s Gulveer Singh with a timing of 29:53.69sec finished fifth in the event. Abhishek’s personal best is 28:54.98 sec, which he had clocked in Gujarat last year. Set 15 years ago, India’s national record of 28:02.89 in men’s 10,000m belongs to the Beijing 2008 Olympian Surendra Singh.
Certainly, it was a big day for Abhishek, son of a small famer Manish Kumar Pal, especially after missing the qualifying of the China’s Asian Games at the last month’s Inter-State Championship at Bhubaneshwar due to muscle pain in stomach.
“After missing the qualifying of the Asian Games due to stomach pain at the Inter-State Championship, I wanted to prove a point for myself. I didn’t bother much about others, but wanted to make a podium finish,” Abhishek said soon after the medal ceremony at Bangkok.“It’s just a start for me in the senior category, and I would like to continue this show in future too,” he added.
Despite having limited resources, Abhishek, who started his athletics career by running on the lanes of his village, had his first international medal, a bronze in 3,000m at the Youth Asian Games in 2013. He also had top-place finish at the Oordegem Memorial Leon Buyle in belgium in 2018, before winning his third gold at the Runners World Utrecht Track Meeting, Utrecht in 3000m in 2018.
Besides winning a gold medal at the Airtel International Half Marathon in 2018 at New Delhi, the 24-year-old athlete also bagged a bronze medal at the 2018 TCA 25K Kolkata Marathon.
However, it was a heart break for 2014 Asian Games bronze medalist Annu Rani, who won silver at the last edition at Doha in 2019 with a 60.22 mark, as she missed out on a bronze after finishing fourth with a best attempt of 59.10m. Annu Rani holds India’s national record of 63.82m set last year but is yet to cross 60m this season. A bronze medalist at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Annu from Meerut is yet to breach the 60m mark this calendar year.
