National Games 2025: Animesh Kujur sets tall targets of first Indian to breach sub-10 and sub-20 barrier

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Another day at the office, another gold for rising sprinter Animesh Kujur. On the penultimate day, at the Ganga Athletics Stadium, the 22-year-old proved once again why he's one of the athletes to watch in the future.

He took home the gold medal in the men's 200m final at the National Games in Uttrakhand, clocking a personal best of 20.58 seconds.

What's even more impressive is that Animesh had been chasing this time for a while, almost breaking his record in previous competitions but falling just short. This time, however, he not only shattered his personal best but also secured the second-best timing in India's history.

He even ran 20.57s at the All India Inter University Athletics Meet last December, but this competition is not recognized by World Athletics, so the mark did not count officially.

"Yes, I ran 20.57s at the All India Inter University Athletics Meet, but it didn't count. So, I am satisfied with my 20.58s timing; I am improving step by step," said Animesh exclusively to myKhel.

"In my opinion, one should never chase records; when they are meant to be broken, they will break on their own. My focus is always on beating my previous timing. Last year, I clocked 20.62 seconds, so I'm happy that I'm improving my timing step by step," Animesh said when asked about breaking the national record. The Odisha sprinter also equalled the National Games meet record of 20.58 seconds, set by Amlan Borgohain.

If national record holder Amlan Borgohain had been in the 200m final, Animesh's timing might have been different. When asked about it, he said, "Obviously, it would have been! He's a tough competitor, and today, apart from me, no one ran under 21 seconds. I need more competition in the race."

Last season, Animesh delivered outstanding performances in both the 100m and 200m, coming agonizingly close to breaking national records in both events. He clocked an impressive 20.65 seconds at the India Open U-23 Athletics Championships, narrowly missing the 200m national record. In the 100m, he almost shattered Manikanta Hoblidhar's national record of 10.23 seconds, running 10.27 in Spain.

While last season saw him touching records but falling just short, this year, Animesh is determined to break through and rewrite history. "I want to be the first Indian to break the sub-10 or sub-20 barrier," Animesh Kujur signed off with flair.