Indian Sprinter Animesh Kujur Shatters National 100m Record in Greece

Animesh Kujur has etched his name in Indian athletic history by shattering the national record in the 100m sprint. He achieved this feat at the Dromia International Sprint and Relays Meeting in Greece.

India's Animesh Kujur clocked an impressive 10.18 seconds in the 100m, setting a new national record in Greece. Simultaneously, Mohammed Afsal also broke the 800m national record in Poland. These achievements highlight the impressive performance of Indian sprinters on the international stage.

Animesh Kujur runs 100m in 10.18 seconds in Greece. (PTI Photo)

Animesh Kujur celebrates his record-breaking 100m run in Greece.

The 22-year-old sprinter clocked 10.18 seconds in the second heat, becoming the first Indian ever to run the 100m in under 10.20 seconds. This performance surpasses the previous national record of 10.26 seconds held by Gurindervir Singh. The event took place in Vari, a suburb of Athens.

In the same event, Sotirios Garagganis of Greece secured the second position with a timing of 10.23 seconds, while Samuli Samuelsson from Finland finished third at 10.28 seconds. The Dromia International Sprint and Relays Meeting is a World Athletics Continental Tour silver label event.

Kujur now holds the national records for both the 100m and 200m. In May, he recorded 20.32 seconds in the men's 200m final at the Asian Athletics Championships in South Korea. This broke his own national record of 20.40 seconds, which he had set earlier in the year at the Federation Cup.

Adding to India's track and field success, Mohammed Afsal, an Asian Games silver medalist, broke his own national record in the men's 800m race. He achieved this feat at the Memorial Czeslawa Cybulskiego in Poznan, Poland, becoming the first Indian to run below 1:45 minutes.

Afsal clocked 1:44.96 minutes, finishing sixth in Heat A/1 of the event.

Prior to this, in May, Afsal recorded 1:45.61s at the UAE Athletics Grand Prix in Dubai, breaking the previous national record of 1:45.65s set by Jinson Johnson in 2018. Afsal finished second in that event.

During Saturday's competition, the top three positions were secured by Polish runners. Maciej Wyderka finished first with a timing of 1:44.23s, achieving both a personal best and a meet record. Filip Ostrowski (1:44.25s) and Patryk Sieradzki (1:44.56s) finished second and third, respectively, also marking their personal bests.