Kujur shelves fastest-man debate; Owens hails India's sprint surge ahead of CWG and Asian Games
Indian sprinter Animesh Kujur is focusing on upcoming international competitions rather than the debate over who holds the title of India's fastest man. Working with coach Martin Owens, Kujur aims to improve his performance as part of India's growing high-performance sports ecosystem.
Why it matters
It highlights the professionalization of Indian athletics and the role of international coaching partnerships in developing elite talent.
Animesh Kujur isn't losing sleep over surrendering the tag of India's fastest man to Gurindervir Singh. Instead, the national record-holder in the 200m wants his performances at the upcoming Commonwealth Games and Asian Games to do the talking.
After Gurindervir's historic sub-10.10 run rewrote the men's 100m national record in Odisha earlier this year, Kujur has inevitably been asked about reclaiming the crown. But the Odisha sprinter has chosen to park that conversation for now.
"Just waiting for Asian Games," Kujur told PTI when asked about regaining India's fastest-man tag.
When pressed further, he smiled and added: "Yeah, just wait till the Asian Games. Then we'll talk again." The calm response is characteristic of the 22-year-old, who has steadily emerged as one of India's brightest sprinting prospects under British coach Martin Owens.
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