GALSGOW: Imagine the scene: there’s a track that is filled with water, and you are on the last leg of your 10000 m run. While you have a lead over the rest of the pack, barring the one in front, you know that one mistake would tear you apart.
Your dreams of getting India back on the world map in running will remain just that. Now that you have put yourself in those shoes, you understand what a 28-year-old Gulveer Singh was going through. Everything that he had done till then culminated in this final hurrah, and one wrong step, and you get thrown back to the wolves.
Gulveer, though, headed towards the wolves not as prey but as a leader of the pack, becoming the first Indian to win a Commonwealth Games medal in the men’s 10,000m event, producing a remarkable performance in such tough conditions. It was India’s second medal in athletics this Commonwealth, equally as valuable as Sarvesh Kushare’s earlier medal from the day.
The Indian clocked 27:49.78 seconds to claim silver, finishing behind Australia's Ky Robinson, who won gold with a timing of 27:48.93 seconds on Tuesday.
"It always feels good to win a medal. The race was good, there was rain, but when you win a medal, it hardly matters if there is rain, sunshine, heat or anything else," the reigning Asian champion told PTI.
"I had left everything to God. Before the race, I told the almighty, dekh lena (please watch over me)," he added.
Although Almighty might have taken him beyond the line, it is Gulveer’s efforts that took him to Glasgow in the first place, having trained extensively under Scott Simmons. In a field that included the 2023 World Championship medallist, Daniel Ebenyo, and a strong contingent of Africans, Gulveer proved decisive.
When it mattered the most, he moved himself right into medal contention, producing a final push to edge past the Isle of Man’s David Mullarkey — in the manner that would best resemble Forrest Gump. And the script to a landmark medal makes it all the sweeter.