New Delhi: Gulveer Singh has gradually raised his standards in long-distance races at the world level, and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow provide an opportunity for him to test his mettle against some of the best runners in the world.
In the last two years, Gulveer has reset the national records in the 5,000m and 10,000m in races outside India. Winning gold medals in both gruelling events at the Asian Championships has added to his aura, and he was also one of the few Indian athletes to receive invitations to compete in the prestigious Diamond League.
It was at the World Championships in Tokyo, though, where Gulveer said he learnt his most crucial lesson. He finished 16th in the 10,000m and narrowly missed qualifying for the 5,000m final. In the 5,000m heats, Gulveer was running behind Norway’s two-time Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who beat him to the final qualifying spot. Gulveer, who clocked 13:42.34, missed the final by a mere 0.19 seconds.
“Running international races is completely different, especially medal races where there is so much at stake. Everyone comes with their own strategy and wants to run their own race. Medal races are slow. Everyone is thinking of winning a medal. The finish is important and it is fast. If you run fast early, you will run out of breath. So you have to assess your own capacity and go along with the field,” Gulveer told HT.
“I don’t want to go out there with any particular strategy and will see how the race unfolds. Yes, I would be looking to run close to the lead group and then see how to take it forward,” he said.
Long-distance races are as much about endurance and speed as they are about strategy. The Commonwealth Games field in Glasgow will be high quality, with the presence of runners from Kenya and Uganda, countries known for their domination at the Games. At the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo won the 5,000m gold medal with a timing of 13:08.08s, while Kenyans Nicholas Kimeli and Jacob Krop claimed silver and bronze. In the 10,000m too, Kiplimo took gold (27:09.19), followed by Kenya’s Daniel Ebenyo and Kibiwott Kandie.
Gulveer’s personal best in the 5,000m is 12:59.77, while in the 10,000m it is 27:00.22. But clocking the fastest times is no guarantee of medal success in distance races. It is more about making a steady start, staying with the lead group and having the conviction to break away and push the body in the final stages, when the legs are heavy and the mind begins to waver.
Gulveer has a good finishing kick, but he has been preparing extra hard to make it even more lethal. He has competed in 1,500m races to add speed.
“Be it the World Championships or the Diamond League, I did my best as per my capability. But I realised that it takes a lot out of you to push yourself in such high-stakes races, and therefore I have worked harder on my endurance and speed. I have mixed my races, competing in the 5,000m, 10,000m, half marathon and 1,500m this year. Also, you need to recover well after these gruelling races. So a good diet and proper recovery are important, and I have been focusing on that,” says the Armyman.
What gives him confidence is his training in Colorado Springs in the US, where he has been training under Scott Simmons for the last couple of seasons.
“I was at the US camp for five months this season and competed in the World Cross Country Championships, half marathons and other races in the US against tough competitors.
“When I joined the camp and started training with Kenyan and other international athletes in the group, some of whom are Olympians and World Championships medallists, I used to be behind them. I was nowhere close to them in training, but today they are surprised to see me running alongside them. They tell me that I have improved and am now running shoulder to shoulder with them. That has given me belief. It gives you so much confidence when you hear something like that,” said Gulveer, who is sponsored by ASICS.
“I am fortunate that I now have so much support from my sponsors, the AFI and the government. It has helped me compete abroad and raise my standards. There was a time when I had to buy shoes with my own savings. Now I have a sponsor to take care of that. It just allows you to focus on running and winning races.”
