Triple jumper Eldhose Paul was India’s unlikely hero on August 7 at the Commonwealth Games (CWG) in Birmingham. He leaped into the history books by recording his best-ever jump of 17.03m in his third attempt, leaving behind his more fancied teammates. Returning to his base—the SAI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru—on August 9, Paul, who hails from Kerala’s Ernakulam district, barely got the chance to rest as he had to attend multiple felicitations and also meet with his coaches, including national coach M. Harikrishnan. Now he also has a foreign coach, Denis Kapustin, appointed by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).
A petty officer with the Navy, Paul comes from a humble background. His father is a day labourer. He lost his mother when he was just four, and he was brought up by his grandmother. It has not been an easy journey for the 25-year-old. He had to endure multiple rejections as he was deemed unfit for disciplines like pole vault and cross-country running because of his short stature.
“I am feeling very proud to have won this medal for my country,” said Paul. “I did not expect to win gold, but I told myself and others to give it the best. I was aiming to touch my personal best. After the fifth round, I knew I would get to the podium.”
Paul’s medal was India’s first ever gold in triple jump at the CWG. India won the silver, too, with Paul’s state-mate Abdulla Aboobacker clearing 17.02m to finish second. It could well have been three out of three for India, but the more fancied Praveen Chithravel narrowly missed out on the bronze.
The trio of triple jumpers now have their personal foreign coaches to train them for the Asian Games and the World Championships next year and the Paris Olympics in 2024. While Aboobacker and Paul will train with Kapustin, Chithravel will train with Cuban Yoandri Betanzos.
The absence of stars like Neeraj Chopra gave a chance to many other Indian athletes to shine at the CWG. India finished fourth with a total of 61 medals–22 gold, 16 silver and 23 bronze. A highlight of the Indian performance was that it won medals in 12 different disciplines, including six in badminton. Athletics accounted for eight medals with one gold, four silver and three bronze.
“I was expecting at least 10-12 medals more, including two in discus throw. That did not happen and Neeraj was not there either. But I am satisfied with our tally, which is better than the previous CWG,” said chief national coach Radhakrishnan Nair. He admitted that the lack of medals in sprints was an issue, but put it down to injuries to main runners. Nair was particularly happy to see 3000m steeplechaser Avinash Sable win a silver and end the Kenyan hegemony in the event. “In the CWG and the World Championships, it is very difficult to get medals in track events because of the presence of Jamaican and Nigerian stars. I expect good results from Sable in the Asian Games and the World Championships. He has a new world-class coach in Scott Simons who will train him scientifically,” said Nair.
Sable finished a disappointing 11th at the World Championships in the US, which concluded just a week before the CWG. It was the slowest steeplechase final in the history of the championships and Sable clocked 8:31.75, his worst performance since October 2019. He, however, came back strongly to finish with a silver in Birmingham, clocking 8:11.20. Simon explained what went wrong in the World Championships. “With Olympic gold and silver medallists taking part, we expected the race to be fast,” he said. “But it became a very slow final, in fact, the slowest in history. It was a very difficult competition for somebody like Sable who does not have the experience in international competitions.”
Speaking after winning the silver at the CWG, Sable said he had resolved not to repeat the mistakes he made at the World Championships. “Had I not trained in the US, I don’t think I would have won a medal at the CWG,” he said. “During the Tokyo Olympics, I was not confident. I did not believe that I could beat the Kenyans. The training with Scott, and the competitions helped me overcome that. I realised that we, too, have the capability.” Sable now looks forward to the Asian Games and the World Championships.
Simons said Sable would turn the corner the next season. “If he can bring his record down to 15:10 in the 5000m race, that will help in steeplechase,” he said. “In a competition like the CWG, one cannot take a risk, but that is possible in Diamond Leagues.”
In the long jump event, Murali Sreeshankar has been one of India’s main medal hopes for some time. And he did not disappoint, clearing 8.08m in his fifth attempt and finishing second behind LaQuan Nairn of the Bahamas. Sreeshankar is the first Indian male long jumper to win a silver at the CWG. “I am happy with my first global medal, but I feel disappointed that I could not win the gold.” The national record holder had finished seventh in the World Championships.
Sreeshankar was coached by his father, S. Murali, till the Tokyo Olympics. But the AFI sacked Murali after Sreeshankar’s disappointing performance in Tokyo and put Kapustin in charge. “My coach feels that I need to work on my running and take off mechanics a lot. With that, I will be able to get those good jumps more consistently in international competitions. We require more international exposure, competing with the best in the world,” said Sreeshankar.
High jumper Tejaswin Shankar has announced that he would focus on decathlon events after his bronze medal at the CWG. He had to take the AFI to court for a spot in the Birmingham contingent and was under pressure to return with a medal. “It has been a roller coaster ride,” he said. “The day I found out that I was actually going to Birmingham, the only thought that crossed my mind was that I got the opportunity, finally. How it came about was not my concern. I wanted to make the most of it. I went there with a positive mindset and won a medal for the country.”
With knee injuries troubling him and having made his point to the AFI, Shankar has decided to focus on decathlon at the Asian Games next year. “I am not leaving high jump. I am doing decathlon because I have started doing other events like long jump and hurdles because it is not possible for me to do high jump consistently. I have injury issues which act up every now and then,” said Shankar. “I just want to be a better athlete.”