Surendra breaks record, makes the Olympics

8220;I couldn8217;t believe I have made it,8221; said an elated Surendra after the race. 8220;I8217;ve been preparing for the Olympics for past two years. My hard work has paid today.8221;

In the process, Armyman Surendra also became the first athlete from the Garhwal Rifles to make the Olympics.

Born in a farmer8217;s family at Ghandiyal village in Chamoli, Uttarakhand, running was more of necessity for Surendra who used to run nearly 10kms a day to attend his school.

Having joined the Garhwal Rifles in 1999, Surendra represented the Army in the national cross country held in Shimla in 2003, which earned him his maiden international cap for India.

After his brilliant run in the Asian Cross Country in Pune in 2004, he was selected by the Army Sports Institute for further training and there was no looking back.

Results: 1.Juan Carlos De La Ossa Yunta ESP 27:28.31s, 2.Carles Castillejo Salvador ESP 27:39.79s, 3.Ayad Lamdassem El Mouhcin ESP 27:45.58s, 4.Surendra Singh IND 28:02.89s, 5.Ali Abdallah ERI 28:04.58s, 6. Rui Pedro Silva POR 28:05.78s