By Admin 
Mohammed Afsal had a small smile on his lips as he topped the 800m heats at the recent National Federation Athletics Championships in Kochi.
His time, 1:46.70s, was more than a second faster than the Athletics Federation of India’s qualification standard (1:47.77) for this month-end’s Asian Championships in Gumi, South Korea.
Afsal, the Asian Games silver medallist, was looking to seal his place in the Indian team with another fine run in the final. He felt in fantastic shape.
Strange world
But middle-distance running is a strange world. And shocking things can happen, especially if it’s a slow race. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, for instance, American Matthew Centrowitz won the 1500m in 3:50.00s, the slowest winning time in an Olympics in more than 80 years!
Afsal experienced the peculiarities of middle-distance running in the final, finishing a surprising fourth.
“The final was a slow race. I couldn’t judge or predict what was going to happen,” he said. “There were some judgement errors from my side and when I went into an outer lane, they took the lead and I couldn’t do anything.”
In search of the perfect race: Afsal isn’t sure what his best strategy over two laps is. ‘I have won races where I have led and have won after staying at the back initially too,’ he says. ‘I still have no idea what suits me.’ | Photo credit: Ritu Raj Konwar
From the previous day’s high, suddenly he hit a low. Afsal, the country’s fastest two-lapper this year, was not picked in the Indian team because he did not finish in the top two.
The 29-year-old was shattered. Missing the Asian Championships means he has to work harder to get onto the Road to Tokyo 2025, the World Athletics rankings system that will help athletes who missed the automatic qualification standard (1:44.50s) make it to September’s World Championships.
A couple of weeks later, a wonderful opportunity presented itself: the UAE Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Tour event.
“After having trained so much, I was mentally down since I finished fourth. I felt I had to get good results this season. My coach Ajith Markose also kept pushing me,” said Afsal. “In Dubai, I was determined to get the [National] record, I was confident of doing it.”
And Afsal wiped away much of his disappointment as he broke Olympian Jinson Johnson’s seven-year-old National record (1:45.65s), clocking 1:45.61 for silver. The race had some quality runners, including Kenya’s former African Championships silver medallist Nicholas Kiplangat, who took gold, and South African Christopher Swart.
“It was a good race, the Kenyan — a 1:44 runner — took the race at a correct pace. There was a South African too who had a PB of 1:45 in altitude. I was confident that if I stuck with them I could clock a good time,” said Afsal, who hails from Palakkad.
“Ajith sir told me I could do it, he had faith in me, I ran with that faith.”
Ajith, who has been working on Afsal’s finish and on sustaining his pace in the second lap at the Reliance Foundation Endurance Programme in Bengaluru, feels the athlete could have done better.
A legend’s take: Sriram Singh, the only Indian to feature in an Olympic 800m final, feels Indian athletes ‘will be running 1:44 by the time of the next Olympics’, but the sub-1:45 will not come in a hurry. | Photo credit: R.V. Moorthy
“We had planned a 1:45 flat, that’s his year’s target too. Had his race been cleaner, he could have done that. But there were hiccups here and there,” said Ajith. “His finish was bad, he did not stick to the plan in the last 30m. Had he executed that, he could have come first.
“I felt he appeared a bit satisfied when he came from the back and got into medal position. He could have changed a gear, kicked a little more in the last 30m, he had the capacity for that.”
The National record has given Afsal new confidence. “I want to keep bettering my time, that is my target. I need more competition experience outside the country,” he said.
So how fast can he go this year?
“In the 800m, you cannot just go and get better at a stretch. You need a good race, good climate, good athletes, so you can’t plan anything. I ran 1:45 because I got a good race,” said Afsal, who emerged from Parli School, one of Kerala’s leading athletics nurseries, where he was coached by P.G. Manoj.
“If I get good races like this, I can get even better, probably break the 1:45 barrier.”
The Sriram effect
Sriram Singh, perhaps India’s greatest middle-distance runner whose brave front-running pushed Cuban Alberto Juantorena to a world record in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, feels the sub-1:45 will not come in a hurry.
“They may not go below 1:45, they will probably do 1:45-dead this year. It depends on the competition. Probably, they will be running 1:44 by the time of the next Olympics,” Sriram, the only Indian to run in an Olympic 800m final, told The Hindu from Jaipur.
Sriram, who featured in three Olympics, finished seventh in Montreal and his time, 1:45.77s (an Asian record until 1994), stood as the National record for 42 years before Johnson (1:45.65s) broke it in 2018.
Johnson, however, is positive the National record will start tumbling faster.
“I feel Indian athletes, like Afsal and Krishan Kumar [Asian Championships silver medallist], have the calibre to run 1:44 this year. If they keep doing it consistently, we can even get to 1:43-something,” said the former Asian Games 1500m champion.
“And for that, we surely need more international exposure because in the 800 and 1500m everything depends on race strategy. When we go for major championships or Games, we always try to win a medal. If you are focusing on a medal, you cannot do a good time, so international exposure is important.
“Now, with corporates like Reliance and JSW coming in, athletes are getting good exposure.”
Johnson knows Afsal well, having raced against him. “Afsal’s reaction is fast when I compare him with myself, his speed is good,” said Johnson.
Different strategies
India’s best middle-distance runners often have one strategy for domestic meets and another for international competitions.
“In India, you have to do front-running to clock a fast time…no point clocking 1:48 and winning a medal. That’s why good runners tend to be front-runners in India,” explained Afsal. “But while leading, you can’t properly judge what’s happening behind your back.”
Bullish view: Jinson Johnson, who knows Afsal from their battles on track, believes the 29-year-old and Asian Championships silver medallist Krishan Kumar ‘have the calibre to run 1:44 this year’. But they will need more international exposure to achieve that time. | Photo credit: Getty Images
When they compete abroad, Indians often play a patient waiting game, shadowing the leaders.
“But, to be honest, I still have no idea what suits me. I have won races where I have led and won after staying at the back initially too,” said Afsal.
Securing automatic qualification (1:44.50s) for the Worlds could be tough, but the National record has helped Afsal climb up to No. 51 in the Road to Tokyo rankings. The Reliance athlete is now looking for quality competitions that will help him confirm his place in the final 56-man list before the qualification doors close on August 24.
“Training-wise, everything is going perfectly. We are now trying for Continental Tour events, probably in Germany or somewhere,” said Afsal, whose favourite athlete is Sebastian Coe.
Coe’s middle-distance duels with Steve Ovett lit up athletics, and Afsal hopes the tight 800m competition in India will lift the event’s status in the country.
Published – May 16, 2025 11:00 pm IST