Animesh Kujur Breaks National Record, Wins 200m Bronze at Asian Athletics Championships 2025

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Indian sprinter Animesh Kujur shattered the men's 200m national record with a blistering 20.32-second run to clinch the bronze medal at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025 in Gumi, South Korea, on Saturday (May 31).

Kujur had already etched his name in the record books earlier this year by clocking 20.40 seconds at the Federation Cup. His latest performance improves that mark by 0.08 seconds, reinforcing his rapid rise in Indian sprinting.

The podium in Gumi saw Japan's Towa Uzawa storm to gold with a championship record time of 20.12 seconds. Saudi Arabia's Abdulaziz Atafi narrowly edged Kujur for silver, registering a personal best of 20.31 seconds.

Kujur's bronze places him alongside Dharambir Singh as only the second Indian to win a 200m medal at the Asian Championships, matching the latter's 2015 achievement. It also contributed to India's growing medal tally, now at 19, as the country sits second behind China with 8 gold, 7 silver, and 4 bronze medals.

Raised in the Maoist-affected Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, Kujur was introduced to sports early, influenced by his father, Amrit Kujur, a deputy superintendent of police and former athlete, and his mother, a hockey player.

He often accompanied his father to training sessions at the police staff quarters. Kujur attended Sainik School in Ambikapur, where he initially played football as a forward before transitioning to athletics, inspired by sprinting legend Usain Bolt.