For a common citizen, 0.02 seconds could be something trivial. After all, it is just two-hundredths of a second. Sport, however, takes divergent paths. A game of cricket may last five days, but for a sprinter, even one-hundredth of a second might turn out to be decisive in a race.
Occasionally, it could be even less than that – In the 1990s, Gail Devers beat Merlene Ottey twice despite being given the same timing. Animesh Kujur, who is now the national record holder in three categories – 100 m, 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay – is no different. He talks in microseconds and milliseconds.
Last Saturday, Animesh became the first Indian to go under 10.2 seconds at an athletics meet held in Greece. Initially, he thought that he hadn’t broken the barrier. “In Greece, I was in the lead from the start,” he told RevSportz. “Previously, I used to start from behind. European Indoor Championships medallists in the 60 m were (also) around.
“My top hand is strong, I kept maintaining my speed. Then I saw the clock saying 10.2 seconds. I said to myself, ‘Arey yaar, I could have gone faster, could have gone under it.’ And my coach was like, ‘No, it is 10.18 seconds, you made the national record.’ That time, I started celebrating. I felt good that I could see the improvements.”
Animesh’s passion to improve by fractions and microseconds could be noticed in his deep breathing while answering the questions in the interview. It was crystal clear that the redoubtable athlete had just undertaken an intense workout. And that kind of vigour and vitality has pushed him to train under different coaches in order to learn and polish his trade.
He has trained under Martin Owens, his coach at the Reliance Odisha High Performance Centre in Bhubaneswar. He also has had a stint with the renowned bobsleigh coach Chris Woolley at the Swiss Olympic Center. “I am currently in Switzerland,” said Animesh. “And I have been working with Chris Woolley. He was focusing on my body mechanics and starts; in which areas can we improve. He took some exercises of mine to see in which position I am lagging. My start timings were improving before going to Greece.
“When you’re thinking of body mechanics, my lower back and hamstring were tight. If I keep working hard on it, then it will improve. Those in the Swiss team also said you have to work on your lower body.”
Animesh also shared his views on how running with faster athletes abroad would help him to upgrade his standards. “In India, I don’t get much faster athletes,” he said. “But because of that, my coach used to take me to European countries to compete with faster athletes. Only if you compete with faster athletes, will you know where exactly you are. Before Athens, I ran in Geneva. There, I ran with one guy from South Africa [Benjamin Richardson] who did 19.79 seconds in 200 m.
There I got to know the difference between 19.79 seconds and 20.27 seconds. There, I did 20.27 seconds. So, I was like, ‘You have to work more. If you’re good in India, that is not much, you have to do well at the world level.’ On the 11th, I am competing in the Monaco Diamond League. I am competing in the men’s U-23 category. In the 100 m, Kishane Thompson, Fred Kerley… all these big names are coming. After that, the ultimate focus is the World Championships, I am in the ranking for 200 m.”
That is about Animesh in present times. Just spool back in time, and you will notice that the 22-year-old wasn’t always fascinated by trimming his timings by microseconds. He was more of a footballer, but gradually his focus shifted towards athletics. Amrit Kujur, his father, in particular supported his interest. In fact, his father was into athletics before switching over to football.
“In 2020, when I passed out of school, there was a lockdown,” said Animesh. “It wasn’t like I was told to just sit at home. I used to go out to keep myself fit. There, I used to run a bit, play some football, they were good players. In school also for 6-7 years, I played football. When the lockdown got over, others told me that there is a state meet. They said, ‘You can go and compete, we have seen that your speed is good while playing football’.
“When I first competed, I participated in the 100m and shot put. Usually, you don’t have that kind of a combination (smiles). When I first went there, the locals said this is how blocks are set, this is how you start. In the race, I came first. At that time, I didn’t know I had qualified for the nationals. After a few days, a call came that you had qualified for the nationals. In Junior nationals, I came fifth in the 100 m and 200 m. Without training, if I can do this well, if I can beat academy-level players, I thought why can’t I continue in this field?
“In 2021, once again lockdown happened. In September, when the lockdown ended, when I competed with the seniors in the Under-23, in the 100 m, in Delhi, I came to the semifinals. In the 200m, my rank was fifth. But my mother was saying: without studies, you can’t do anything. It was my father and aunt who supported me. They told me, in whichever field you feel like you want to pursue, you go for it. For one year, my mother tried to make me study for one year, but I didn’t have much interest. In October 2022, I got selected for Reliance. In Under-23, I got the gold medal. I joined Reliance and then my life changed.”
Fast-forward to the current world, and Animesh’s vision is to break the 10-second and 20-second barriers in 100 and 200 metres. Among those two events, the 200 is clearly his preferred one. “I want to go below 10 seconds in 100 m and below 20 seconds in 200 m. My main aim is to go below 20 seconds because 200 m is my main event, I like to do it.
“100m, I will do just as a side event for my start and top hand because 100 m is totally different when compared to 200 m. In 100 m, you have to run with so much power. In 200 m, you need power and endurance. So, my workout is based on 200 m. From the start, 200 m is my favourite.”
Just a glance at his celebrations, and it is enough to gauge his sporting hero: The legendary sprinter, Usain Bolt. And going by Animesh’s deep reservoirs of willpower, it is safe to say that his idol has inspired him to always aim for something higher. “From the start, my inspiration was Usain Bolt,” said Animesh. “So, I try to imagine like him. He is also tall, those who are tall can’t start well compared to short-height people. So, I used to think, ‘If he can do it in the Olympics, then why can’t I do it?'”
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