100m Sprinting: Gurindervir Singh is India’s fastest man, but the finish line is still far away

By the time the men’s 100m final began at the Federation Cup in Ranchi on May 23, 2026, India’s national record had already changed hands twice within that tournament — a first in Indian sprinting. A day earlier, Gurindervir Singh had lowered the national record to 10.17 seconds in the first semifinals. Minutes later, Animesh Kujur reclaimed it with 10.15 seconds in the second semi-final. Gurindervir seized the opportunity the final offered. His time of 10.09 seconds not only restored the record to his name but also made him the first Indian to break the 10.1-second barrier.

The achievement marked the latest chapter in a rivalry that is transforming Indian sprinting. Anil Kumar’s national record of 10.21 seconds had remained unbeaten since 2000. By clocking 10.18 seconds, Animesh not only broke that in July 2025, but became the first Indian to cross the 10.2-second barrier.

While it took 25 years for Indian men’s sprinting to breach the 10.2-second barrier, it has seen a dramatic leap forward since then. With Gurindervir’s 10.09 seconds, followed by Animesh’s 10.15 and 10.18 seconds, and Manikanta Hoblidhar’s 10.19 seconds, four of the five fastest 100m sprints by Indian men have been recorded in the last two seasons.

But where does India’s fastest-ever sprinter stand in the global arena?

An analysis of World Athletics’ all-time men’s 100m lists shows both the significance of Gurindervir’s breakthrough and how far India remains from sprinting’s elite. On the global all-time list, Gurindervir’s record ranks only 524th.

At the very top, the sport remains remarkably concentrated. Ten of the top 11 performances belong to sprinters from just two countries — Jamaica and the U.S. Jamaica’s Usain Bolt holds the world record at 9.58 seconds. American Tyson Gay shares the second-fastest time in history at 9.69 seconds. The only exception is Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala, whose 9.77-second run shares the 10th place.

The sub-10-second barrier remains one of athletics’ most exclusive benchmarks. More than half a century after electronic timing became the standard in 1968, only 39 countries have produced athletes with 100m runs recorded under 10 seconds.

Martin Owens, Animesh’s coach and the head coach of the Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High Performance Centre, told The Hindu that breaking that barrier requires far more than raw speed. “You need natural talent. You need good facilities. You need good recovery and medical backup. You need an intelligent programme,” Mr. Owens said, adding that coaching from an early age, financial support and international exposure are also crucial.

When every country’s fastest man ever is compared, India sits at around 65th among 182 nations. Several nations with populations under 1.5 crore rank ahead of India, including Trinidad and Tobago, Botswana and Namibia.

It is notable that the fastest sprint performances are usually recorded with a helping breeze. An analysis of the best performances from these 182 nations shows that 139 were achieved with tailwinds between 0.1 and 2 metres per second, while only 17 came while facing headwinds. Even slight wind assistance matters in an event decided by hundredths of a second.

Four of India’s top five performances, including Gurindervir’s, were recorded with tailwinds. However, his national record came with a relatively modest breeze of 0.3 metres per second, indicating scope for faster performances under more favourable conditions.

Gurindervir, after setting the new record, told the media that the world would soon see Indians running below 10 seconds. During his post-race celebrations, he held up the back of his bib, where he had scribbled: “Task is not finished yet.”