Synopsis
On February 22, Gulveer Singh, India's Asian Games bronze medallist, broke the 13-minute barrier for the indoor 5,000m at Boston University, setting new national and Asian records while qualifying for the 2025 World Athletics Championships.Key Takeaways
- Gulveer Singh achieved a remarkable time of 12:59.77 seconds.
- He surpassed the previous Asian indoor record of 13:08.41.
- Gulveer improved his outdoor national record for the 5,000m.
- He met the automatic qualification standard for the 2025 World Championships.
- His performance is a promising indication for the future of Indian distance running.
New Delhi, Feb 22 (NationPress) India’s Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medallist, Gulveer Singh, made history on Friday at Boston University track by surpassing the 13-minute mark in the indoor 5,000m event and enhancing his outdoor national record.
The 26-year-old Army distance runner finished fourth at the Terrier DMR Challenge indoor competition in Boston, simultaneously setting a new Asian Indoor 5,000m record and achieving the automatic qualifying benchmark for the 2025 World Athletics Championships.
Gulveer recorded a remarkable time of 12:59.77 seconds, marking a first for an Indian runner, just missing the podium at the Terrier DMR Challenge.
The event saw USA’s Olympic 1500m champion Cole Hocker take gold with a time of 12:57.82, followed closely by Cooper Teare at 12:57.97 and Jack Rayner in third at 12:59.43.
“My aim in Boston was to enhance my personal best in the 5,000m,” Gulveer expressed after his record-setting performance via phone. “I’m thrilled to have reached a new milestone during the race.”
Gulveer's achievement in Boston also surpassed the previous Asian indoor record of 13:08.41 set by Thailand’s Kieran Tuntivate in 2022.
His personal best for the 5,000m (outdoor) and national record of 13:11.82 seconds was achieved last year. Additionally, he clocked 27:14.88 for the 10,000m (outdoor), also enhancing his own national record in Japan last year.
Securing fourth place in Boston, the Army’s elite distance runner also exceeded the 2025 Tokyo World Athletics Championships automatic qualification time of 13:01.00 for the 5,000m.
“My objective was to set a personal best during the race. I’m delighted to have met the automatic entry standard for the World Athletics Championships in September,” the Asian Games bronze medallist remarked.
Last week, the army athlete also broke his personal best and national indoor 3000m track record during the David Hemery Valentine Invitational at Boston University. His indoor 3,000m time was 7:38.26 seconds. “I’m grateful to the Sports Ministry and Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for their support and international exposure ahead of the September 13 to 21 World Athletics Championships in Japan,” Gulveer stated.
AFI president Bahadur Singh Sagoo noted that the early season performance of a core group of Indian distance runners based out of Colorado Springs in the USA is promising for the future. “We are optimistic about achieving strong results in the upcoming outdoor season,” the AFI president concluded.
