They said his career was done, now Gurindervir Singh is India’s fastest man | Sport-others News

It was Usain Bolt’s scorching run in Beijing, during the 2008 Olympics, that inspired a young boy in Patial village, Jalandhar, to step on the track.Seventeen years later, Gurindervir Singh isn’t close to that scintillating 9.69-second dash his idol. But on Friday, he became the country’s fastest man, clocking 10.20 seconds at the Indian Grand Prix 1 in Bengaluru, Karnataka. Gurindervir broke the previous national record of 10.23s set his compatriot Manikanta Hoblidhar at the 2023 National Open Athletics Championships.
“I have been waiting for this record for a very long time. I knew that I was capable of getting the national record. When I did 10.27s in 2021, it was just a difference of 20 milliseconds. I am happy to finally break the record,” Gurindervir told The Indian Express over the phone.
Story continues below this ad

At the Indian Grand Prix 1, Gurindervir was up against two former national record holders — Manikanta and Amlan Borgohain. However, it is not a new thing for him as he trains with both sprinters at the Reliance Foundation in Mumbai. The three fastest men of the country were clubbed in the same group at IGP with Gurindervir coming on top and Manikanta clocking his personal best of 10.22s while Amlan clocked 10.43s.
Comeback from illness
His path, however, has been littered with challenges. The 25-year-old sprinter had a tough bout with ulcers in his stomach. He was unable to eat anything and lost weight due to the problem, leading to a sharp reduction in his timing.
“Once I did 10.27s in 2021, I was pretty sure that I would go ahead and break the national record. But I was taken aback the gut issue. I was unable to take my diet properly as I would vomit everything. At the 2022 Fed Cup, where Amlan clocked 10.25s, I was unable to perform as I lost a lot of weight. Before that tournament, I lost 12 kg in a span of eight days,” said Gurindervir.
2022 was Gurindervir’s worst year; his best timing was down to 10.93s, something he wouldn’t even clock at the junior level. “It was a frustrating period for me. I had clocked better timings at the junior level. A lot of people dismissed my 2021 performance as a fluke and said it was the end of my career. I told my then coach Sarabjit sir about the issue and consulted a doctor with him. The issues were caused due to a lot of outside food that I used to eat. Once I met the doctor, there was an improvement and I returned to the track,” he mentioned.Story continues below this ad
After his return in 2023, he clocked 10.50s as his fastest timing of the year. But it was last year that he truly returned to his old self, clinching the Federation Cup gold medal with a timing of 10.33s. While that performance was deemed illegal due to excessive wind of +2.5 m/s during his race, he clocked 10.32s at the National Inter-State Championships in June 2024 to beat Amlan and Animesh Kuju for the gold medal.
Training with fastest sprinters
A lot has changed for Gurindervir since he started training under James Hillier at the Reliance Foundation. The athlete from Punjab was used to training alone without much competition and had to rely on his own understanding of nutrition.
Now, he trains in the company of some of India’s fastest sprinters. “The best part of training with Amlan and Mani is that they push me to do better in training. Amlan does more weight training than me and Mani has better endurance, so looking at both, I have to give my best. Such things were not possible for me when I was training alone,” Gurindervir said.
Known for his explosive strength while running, Gurindervir believes that starting early in his childhood led to his basics being strong. “I got my first spikes when I was in 7th standard. My father (Kamaljeet Singh) is a former volleyball player and he trained me with all the knowledge he had. That is the reason my basics are solid.”Story continues below this ad
However, it was not easy for him to adapt to the new training routine and the system under Hillier, who oversees the sprints programme at the Reliance Foundation. “There was a weight overload after I joined here. My muscles would feel sore and I was unable to finish my training. It took me some time to adjust to the new routine and the results have started coming now,” said Gurindervir, adding that his target is to end India’s sprint medal drought at the Asian level.

“My complete focus at the moment is on the Asian Track and Field Championships. We haven’t won a medal in a long time and I would like to break that deadlock. With my qualification done, I am looking at the medal,” said Gurindervir.