Who is Avinash Sable? Know All About 3000m Steeplechaser's Background, Career, Family, Personal Life

Avinash Sable is a track and field athlete who competes in the 3000m steeplechase events. He will be in action at the Paris 2024 Olympics on August 5 in the first round of the 3000m steeplechase event.

He holds the national record of 8:09.91, achieved at the 2024 Paris Diamond League, where he finished in sixth place. This marked the tenth occasion on which he set the national record.

Early Life and Education

Avinash was born on September 13, 1994, in Mandwa, Beed district, Maharashtra, into a family of farmers. From the age of six, he would either run or walk the 6 km (3.7 mi) journey between his home and school due to the lack of transportation in his village.

Personal Life

After finishing 12th grade, he enlisted in the 5 Mahar regiment of the Indian Army, serving at the Siachen Glacier during 2013-2014, followed by postings in the deserts of north-western Rajasthan and then in Sikkim starting in 2015.

Athletics Career

In 2015, he participated in inter-army cross country running at the urging of his colleagues, and later transitioned to steeplechase training. In January 2017, during a cross-country race in Hyderabad, Avinash caught the attention of army coach Amrish Kumar.

Amrish recommended that he focus on training for the steeplechase event. At that time, Avinash was 20 kg overweight, weighing approximately 76 kg. Nevertheless, with the support and guidance of Coach Amrish Kumar, he successfully shed 20 kgs within a span of three months.

In 2018, Avinash failed to qualify for the Asian Games due to an ankle injury. He broke the 37-year-old national record of 8:30.88 with a time of 8:29.80 at the National Open Championships in Bhubaneswar.

In March 2019, he set a new national record of 8:28.94 at the Federation Cup in Patiala, qualifying for the 2019 Asian Athletics Championships and World Championships.

In the same year, he became the first Indian male steeplechaser to qualify for the World Championships since 1991 and won a silver medal at the Asian Athletics Championships in Doha with a time of 8:30.19.

On October 1, 2019, he broke his own national record at the World Championships with a time of 8:25.23 in the heats. After an appeal, he qualified for the final, finishing with a new national record of 8:21.37 and placing 13th.

In 2020, he set a national record at the Delhi Half Marathon, finishing in under 61 minutes. At the Summer Olympics, he was placed seventh in the heats with a national record time of 8:18.12.

In 2022, he set two more national records (8:16.21 at the Indian Grand Prix and 8:12.48 at the Meeting International Mohamed VI). He won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games with a national record time of 8:11.20.

In 2023, he finished 35th at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships, clocking 31:43 over 10 km. Avinash won gold in the steeplechase and silver in the 5000 meters at the Asian Games.