Sudha Singh

Sudha Singh (born 25 June 1986) is an Indian Olympic athlete in the 3000 metres steeplechase event. A national record holder in the event, she has represented India at international events since 2005. Singh is an Asian Champion in the discipline and has won two gold and four silver medals at varying editions of the Asian Games and the continental championships.

Sudha Singh
Singh in 2016
Personal information
Full nameSudha Singh
NationalityIndian
Born (1986-06-25) 25 June 1986
Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, India
Height1.58 m (5 ft 2 in)
Weight45 kg (99 lb)
Sport
CountryIndia
SportTrack and field
Event(s)3000 metres steeplechase
ClubRailways
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)9:26:55 (Shanghai 2016)
Medal record
Representing  India
Women's athletics
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place2010 Guangzhou3000 m st.
Silver medal – second place2018 Jakarta3000 m st.
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place2017 Bhubaneswar3000 m st.
Silver medal – second place2009 Guangzhou3000 m st.
Silver medal – second place2011 Kobe3000 m st.
Silver medal – second place2013 Pune3000 m st.
Updated on 9 July 2017.

Singh's breakthrough came at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, where she won the gold medal in steeplechase. She has since won a gold at the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships in Bhubaneswar and a silver at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and has represented India at two consecutive Olympic Games in 2012 and 2016. Singh was conferred with India's second highest sporting honour, the Arjuna Award in 2012.She was awarded India's fourth highest civilian award the Padma Shri in 2021.[1][2]

Career

Singh's breakthrough performance came in the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China when she won the gold medal with a time of 9:55.67; she became the first Asian Champion in the discipline as it was the first instance of the 3000 meters steeplechase at the Asian Games.[3]

In June 2012, Singh qualified for Olympic Games 2012 after she broke her own 3,000m steeplechase national record with a timing of 9:47.70 secs.[4] At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Singh finished 13th in her steeplechase heat and did not qualify for the finals.[5]

In the 2014 Asian Games held in Incheon, South Korea, Sudha finished fourth, one place behind Lalita Babar who not only won the bronze medal in the 3000m steeplechase event but also broke Sudha's national record, clocking 9:35.37 in the process.[6] However, the gold medallist Ruth Jebet from Bahrain was disqualified on account of stepping inside the track before crossing the line, and Singh was promoted and won the bronze medal.[7]

In August 2015, Sudha Singh sealed her spot in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with a 19th-place finish in the women's marathon event, one place behind O.P.Jaisha in Beijing. Singh finished just behind Jaisha at 19th with a time of 2:35:35.[8]

Maharashtra's Lalita Babar finished the 3000 meters steeplechase in 9:27.09 to win the gold and set the national record while Sudha, representing Uttar Pradesh, came up with a timing of 9:31.86 and bettered the Rio Games qualification standard of 9:45.00 on the second and penultimate day of the Federation Cup National Athletics Championships in Delhi.[9] Singh bettered the national Record in May 2016, at the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) Diamond League in Shanghai.[10]

At the 2016 Summer Olympics Singh took ill after competing and returned to India, where she was diagnosed with swine flu and ruled out from competition for the rest of the season.[11]

Singh participated in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, having trained under her new coaches Lalit Bhanot and Renu Kolhi. She won the silver medal in the 3000 meters steeplechase with a time of 9:40.04 minutes.[12] Singh told The Quint that she was dropped from the team owing to her age, but was happy that she could come up with a medal under the tutelage of her new support staff. She said: "I am very happy that I won the medal despite everyone telling me that I'm too old to compete at the International circuit [...] My critics have motivated me to do better."[13]

Awards and honours

Following her gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games, Singh was awarded the Manyawar Shri Kanshiram Ji International Sports Award by Government of Uttar Pradesh. Singh was subsequently conferred with the Arjuna Award (India's second highest sporting honour) by the Government of India in 2012.[3]

International competitions
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  India
2009 Asian Championships Guangzhou, China 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3000 m s'chase 10:10.77
2010 Commonwealth Games Delhi, India 5th 3000 m s'chase 9:57.63
Asian Games Guangzhou, China 1st place, gold medalist(s) 3000 m s'chase 9:55.67
2011 Asian Championships Kobe, Japan 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3000 m s'chase 10:08.52
2012 Olympic Games London, United Kingdom 21st (h) 3000 m s'chase 9:48.86
2013 Asian Championships Pune, India 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3000 m s'chase 10:09.80
World Championships Moscow, Russia 23rd (h) 3000 m s'chase 9:51.05
2014 Asian Games Incheon, South Korea 4th 3000 m s'chase 9:35.64
2015 World Championships Beijing, China 19th Marathon 2:35:35
2016 Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 30th (h) 3000 m s'chase 9:43.29
2017 Asian Championships Bhubaneswar, India 1st place, gold medalist(s) 3000 m s'chase 9:59.47
2018 Asian Games Jakarta, Indonesia 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3000 m s'chase 9:40.03

References
  1. "Padma Awards 2021 announced". Ministry of Home Affairs. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  2. "Shinzo Abe, Tarun Gogoi, Ram Vilas Paswan among Padma Award winners: Complete list". The Times of India. 25 January 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  3. "Sudha Singh". 2018 Asian Games. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  4. "Sudha Singh". The Times of India. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
  5. "London 2012 3000m steeplechase women - Olympic Athletics". 9 August 2016. Archived from the original on 5 December 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
  6. "Athletes_Profile | Biographies | Sports". www.incheon2014ag.org. Archived from the original on 22 November 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  7. "Asian Games 2014: Lalita wins silver, Sudha bronze in steeplechase". IBNLive. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  8. "World Athletics Championships: India's Jaisha Orchatteri breaks national record in women's marathon - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  9. , Sudha Singh Profile: Women’s Marathon.
  10. "National record a gift for India's support: Steeplechaser Sudha Singh". Hindustan Times. 16 May 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
  11. Rio Olympian Sudha Singh tested positive for Swine Flu, not Zika. DNA India (2016-08-23). Retrieved on 2016-08-24.
  12. "Asian Games: Sudha Singh Wins Silver in Women's 3000m Steeplechase". The Quint. 27 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  13. "'I've Proven my Critics Wrong': Sudha Singh on Asian Games Silver". The Quint. 27 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018 – via YouTube.
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