ATHLETICS | A combination of hard work and manifestation spurs Vishal to glory

admin — Sun, 24 May 2026 12:35:00 +0000

Vishal T.K. of Tamil Nadu won the 400m gold in 44.98s in the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 at Birsa Munda stadium holds a piece of paper with ‘44 COMING HOME’ written on it in Ranchi on Satuday, 23 May 2026.
| Photo Credit: RITU RAJ KONWAR

Exuding confidence after becoming the first Indian to clock a sub-45 seconds time, quartermiler Vishal T.K. said his positive mindset was the key to his success.

The 22-year-old, who owned the National record (45.12) prior to the Federation athletics meet at the Birsa Munda Stadium (Morabadi) here, rose to the occassion and scripted history by clocking 44.98.

His result was a combination of hard work and manifestation as he pulled out a piece of paper with ‘44 COMING HOME’ written on it.

Vishal T.K. of Tamil Nadu celebrates after winning the men’s 400m gold in 44.98s in the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 at Birsa Munda stadium in Ranchi on Satuday, 23 May 2026.
| Photo Credit:
RITU RAJ KONWAR

“I feel proud. I did this for my country. I trained hard, it’s always behind the scenes. Competition is easier..I missed the Commonwealth Games qualification (narrowly). God has some other plans. I’ll work hard and come again,” said Vishal.

Vishal credited his coach Jason Dawson, who’s like a father figure to him, for inculcating a strong mindset in him. “I made up my mind, read my race, visualised it…Visualization is a part of the work. You’ve already run a race in the mind.

Huge record!! Vishal TK becomes the first Indian to smash the 45 second barrier in the 400m!! He clocks 44.98 to break his own National Record in the 400m. Stunning day for Indian athletics!! pic.twitter.com/oth50ZbaEO

— jonathan selvaraj (@jon_selvaraj) May 23, 2026

“It becomes easier…This is my coach’s mindset which I have. He taught me a lot. I’m still learning from him.

“It’s not about the conditions, it’s about the mindset. I can run on the sea also. We’ve to be positive.”

C. Latha, a former 800m National champion and the secretary of the Tamil Nadu Athletics Association, which supported Vishal in his formative years, was excited. “We expected him to clock 44 seconds at the Indian Open 400m Meet at Thiruvananthapuram (in March). But his coach said Vishal would peak for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

“Behind the scenes, we work hard that no one sees. They only (see) this race.”

Hear him out

Vishal TK, who became the first Indian to break the 45-second barrier in the 400m with a national record time of 44.98s, speaks his heart out

: @jon_selvaraj pic.twitter.com/gB0FOB9TCE

— Sportstar (@sportstarweb) May 23, 2026

“I expected both Vishal and Rajesh Ramesh, who has been consistent for the last four years, to go below 45. I came with a poster for them but was disappointed. I’m sure both will do 44 at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games and win medals,” said Latha.

Looking at a bigger picture, Vishal liked the keen competition among Indian quartermilers. “India is here to compete. We’re coming. Five of us competed (clocking 45 seconds or less). I’m happy for them. They’re also working hard. Hopefully, next year, 44 will be easier,” said Vishal.

Published – May 24, 2026 06:05 pm IST

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Gurindervir and Vishal set the track ablaze with national records

admin — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:50:00 +0000

Gurindervir Singh and Vishal T.K. smashed the men’s 100m and 400m National records respectively to set the track ablaze in the Federation athletics meet at the Birsa Munda Stadium (Morabadi) here on Saturday.

Tejaswin Shankar added more thrill to the historic evening by finishing his decathlon routine on a high and becoming the first Indian to score 8000-plus points while resetting the National record.

Gurindervir 10.09!!

Fastest Indian of all time! pic.twitter.com/mQix45As8i

— jonathan selvaraj (@jon_selvaraj) May 23, 2026

Gurindervir, who posted 10.17 while Animesh Kujur rewrote the National record with 10.15 in the semifinals a day ago, renewed the rivalry with a strong start and putting his rivals under pressure.

He thus became the first Indian to log a sub-10.10 time over the distance. Second-placed Kujur clocked 10.20.

I am just too good: Vishal T.K. of Tamil Nadu celebrates after winning the men’s 400m gold in the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 at the Birsa Munda stadium in Ranchi on Satuday, 23 May 2026.
| Photo Credit:
RITU RAJ KONWAR

Flashing a sheet of paper with ‘Time is 10.10. Not finished yet’ written on it, Gurindervir, who also qualified for the Commonwealth Games, said, “People say a lot on social media. This is for myself.”

In the 400m semifinals, Vishal (45.27) along with Rajesh Ramesh (45.40) and Jay Kumar (45.47) had gone below Arokia Rajiv’s 10-year-old meet record (45.47).

“Behind the scenes, we work hard that no one sees. They only (see) this race.”

Hear him out

Vishal TK, who became the first Indian to break the 45-second barrier in the 400m with a national record time of 44.98s, speaks his heart out

: @jon_selvaraj pic.twitter.com/gB0FOB9TCE

— Sportstar (@sportstarweb) May 23, 2026

A day later, the lanky runner gave a confident performance to become the first Indian to record a sub-45 time (44.98) ahead of second-positioned Rajesh Ramesh (45.31). However, he missed the CWG qualifying mark (44.96) narrowly.

“Before the race I fixed my mind. I knew I could run 44, but didn’t tell anyone,” said Vishal.

Tejaswin’s 8057 was good enough to earn him a CWG ticket.

The results (finals): Men: 100m (CWG Q mark 10.16): 1. Gurindervir Singh (Rel) 10.09 (NR, Old 10.15, Animesh Kujur, 2026), 2. Kujur (Odi) 10.20, 3. Pranav Gurav (Rel) 10.29.

New high: Tejaswin Shankar preps his discus on way to breaching the 8000 point mark in decathlon event in the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 at the Birsa Munda stadium in Ranchi on Satuday, 23 May 2026.
| Photo Credit:
RITU RAJ KONWAR

400m (CWG Q mark 44.96): 1. Vishal T.K. (TN) 44.98 (NR, Old 45.12, Vishal, 2025), 2. Rajesh Ramesh (TN) 45.31, 3. Jay Kumar (UP) 45.47.

1500m (CWG Q mark 3:30.82): 1. Sakir (Har) 3:45.01, 2. Ajay Kumar Saroj (UP) 3:45.96, 3. Sunil Dawar (MP) 3:46.42.

Decathlon (CWG Q mark 7787): 1. Tejaswin Shankar (Rel) 8057 (NR, Old 7947, Tejaswin, 2026), 2. Thowfeeq N. (NCOE Trivandrum) 7503, 3. Gokul K.R. (Navy) 7157.

Women: 100m (CWG Q mark 11.17): 1. Sudeshna Shivankar (Mah) 11.56s, 2. Giridharani Ravikumar (TN) 11.58, 3. Tamanna (Har) 11.62.

400m (CWG Q mark 51.36): 1. R. Vithya Ramraj (TN) 52.22, 2. Ansa Babu (AIP) 53.07, 3. Prachi (JSW) 53.26.

Krishna Jayasankar of Reliance won the women’s shot put in the 29th National Senior Athletics Federation Competition 2026 at the Birsa Munda stadium in Ranchi on Satuday, 23 May 2026.
| Photo Credit:
RITU RAJ KONWAR

1500m (CWG Q mark 4:05.09): 1. Pooja (JSW) 4:11.34, 2. Ankita (Utk) 4:12.28, 3. Anju (Har) 4:21.26.

Triple jump (CWG Q mark 14.25m): 1. Niharika Vashisht (Pun) 13.64m (MR, Old 13.57m, Anisha K. Vijayan, 2006), 2. Bhairabi Roy (Rly) 13.28m, 3. Mallala Anusha (AP) 13.28m.

Shot put (CWG Q mark 17.62m): 1. Krishna Jayasankar (Rel) 17.35m, 2. Yogita (Har) 16.82m, 3. Shiksha (Rel) 16.61m.

Pole vault (CWG Q mark 4.45m): 1. Baranica Elangovan (TN) 4.10m (MR, Old 4.06m, Krishna Rachan, 2019), 2. Nitika Akare (MP) 4.10m, 3. Krishna Rachan (Rly) 3.90m.

Javelin (CWG Q mark 59.79m): 1. Shilpa Rani (Har) 56.46m, 2. Annu Rani (UP) 55.91m, 3. Rashmi K. (AP) 54.85m.

Published – May 23, 2026 09:54 pm IST

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Vishal T.K. – Artifex.News

ATHLETICS | A combination of hard work and manifestation spurs Vishal to glory

Gurindervir and Vishal set the track ablaze with national records