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Journalism of Courage
Animesh Kujur, the National Games gold medalist, running in Lane 4 kept an eye out for Manikanta Hoblidhar, the former national record holder in Lane 3 in the 100 metres final. Manikanta had broken the meet record in the semifinals to make a statement. Yet, from Lane 2 emerged the surprise winner, Pranav Pramod Gurav.
“I did not see Pranav in my view, I saw only Manikanta,” Animesh said after the race comprising the crème de la crème of men’s sprinting stars, including national record holder Gurindervir Singh. Gurindervir looked in discomfort during the final and finished sixth (11.21s) in humid conditions. By the 70 metre mark it seemed like a two horse-race between Animesh and Manikanta before Pranav shot through like a bolt at the finish line to clock 10.27 seconds and win gold. Animesh finished second (10.32s) and Manikanta was third (10.35s).
It was a red-letter day for 23-year-old Pranav as he won his first-ever gold medal at a senior national competition. The little-known sprinter attracted attention when he raised his hands skyward and shouted ‘Jai Shivaji’ three times after winning the race. Pranav clarified he wasn’t trying to make a political statement nor was he trying to be casteist. “Shivaji and Sambhaji… when I take their names I get goosebumps. I get very motivated. That is all,” Pranav said.
He was emotional too because his 84-year-old grandfather Hari Gurav, who he is very attached to, is admitted in the ICU because of high creatinine levels.
“He was admitted after I ran in Chennai (Indian Open). I was tense. For him, I have run this race and I am hoping he will be fine soon,” Pranav said.
Missing out on a gold medal has more or less been the story of Pranav’s career. At the National Games in February he was second to Animesh, just one of the many instances when he missed out.
“It has been worth it (wait to win a gold). For all these years I didn’t give up. I had lots of ups and downs,” Pranav said.
Hailing from Daund, 80 kilometres away from Pune, Pranav started training with a qualified coach, Aravind Sawant, only when he turned 18. But the challenge was to find a balance between training to become a sprinter and studying for engineering.
Today he is a national gold medalist and a civil engineer.
“I would travel for about eight hours every day to the AISSMS College of Engineering. I would also train at the same time in Pune. It took time for me to find a balance between studying and training. Professors used to advise me that if you want to be a good engineering student you can’t miss class. I used to practice till about 11 am before going to college. But later, I convinced the college to allow me 50 percent attendance,” Pranav said.
His parents Pramod and Suvarna were keen that he focussed on getting an engineering degree but after he won an Under-23 silver they too realised he had potential as an athlete.
Prior to coming under the wings of coach Sawant, Pranav says he did only ‘donkey work’ or training without a proper system in place.
“I didn’t know what 100m or 200m was. For two to three years I begged school teachers in Daund to let me run the 100 metres. One day I got an opportunity at the Taluka level. I ran without spikes. Back then I would do ‘donkey work’ like hill running or running up steps but there was no focus.”
Pranav expected a tough final on Monday and said he didn’t expect to win the race because of the great form of his competitors. He aimed to improve his personal best, knowing he would have to really push himself to the limit in the high-quality field.
“Everybody was performing well. I was expecting someone to run a 10.10s, Gurvindervir, Animesh and Manikanta are doing really well. I didn’t expect to win the race. I want to thank my coach for helping me win this medal.”
Though he works for the Central Railway, Pranav is hoping to get a sponsor. “My father still gives me funds,” he said. He believes his first place finish is not a flash in the pan. “I know I can run faster if I get the right support.”
The heats, semis and final were all held on Day 1 in humid conditions else the national record (10.20s) could have been lowered, the top sprinters believed. Manikanta is confident that it is just a matter of time before the mark is shattered again. “It could happen at the Asian Athletics Championships in May,” Manikanta said.
As for Pranav, he has his big target dangling across his chest – an Olympic rings pendant.”Qualifying for the Olympics is my big dream. I will do my best to reach my goals.”
Men: 100m (Asian Qualifying time 10.25 seconds): Pranav Pramod (Railway Sports) 10.27 seconds, Animesh Kujur (Odisha) 10.32 seconds, Manikanta Hoblidhar (Army) 10.35 seconds;1500m (Asian Q time 3:42.30); Yoonus Shah (JSW) 3:41.93 seconds, Ajay Kumar Saroj (Uttar Pradesh) 3:42.64, Narender Singh (Haryana) 3:42.77; 10,000m (Asian Q Time 29:33.26): Sawan Barwal (Army) 28:57.13 (meet record. Previous 28:57.90 set in 2007 by Surendra Singh in Kolkata), Abhishek Pal (Railway Sports) 29:14.86, Kiran Matre (Army) 29:47.62; Javelin throw (AQ Time 75.36m): Sachin Yadav (Uttar Pradesh) 83.86m, Yashvir Singh (Railway Sports) 80.85m, Sahil Silwal (Reliance) 77.84m
Women: 100m (Asian Q time 11.46 seconds): Nithya Gandhe (Telangana) 11.50, Abinaya Rajarajan (Tamil Nadu) 11.54 seconds, Sneha SS (Karnataka) 11.62 seconds; 1500m (Asian Q Time 4:15.00): Lili Das (Uttarakhand) 4:10.88 seconds, Pooja (Haryana) 4:12.56 secs, Kajal R (Gujarat) 4:20.67 secs; 10,000m (Asian Q Time 33:24.79): Sanjivani Jadav (Maharashtra) 33:44.43, Seema (Himachal Pradesh) 34:55.92, Beby (Uttar Pradesh) 34:59.67; Pole vault (Asian Q mark 4.10m): Pavithra Venkatesh (Tamil Nadu) 4.00m, Baranica Elangovan (Tamil Nadu) 4.00m, Vanshika Ghanghas (Haryana) 3.90m.
