Asian Games: ‘Not satisfied, wanted national anthem to be played,’ says Gulveer after medal treble

Nagoya, Sep 29 (SocialNews.XYZ) India’s Gulveer Singh completed a historic triple-medal haul at the Asian Games 2026 on Tuesday, but the distance runner admitted he was not satisfied with his campaign, as his dream of hearing the National Anthem from the podium remained unfulfilled.

Gulveer won bronze in the men’s 5000m final, clocking 13:32.75 at the Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium to add to the silver medals he had secured in the 10,000m and 1500m events.

His third medal made him the first Indian athlete in 40 years to win three medals at a single edition of the Asian Games. However, the achievement did not completely satisfy the 27-year-old, who had arrived in Nagoya targeting gold.

“One thing is that I am not satisfied because I had come here thinking that my national anthem would be played. My only dream was to stand on the podium and have the National Anthem played. That did not happen. We will see next time and come back after working even harder,” Gulveer told the broadcaster after the race.

Bahrain’s Birhanu Balew won the 5000m gold in 13:30.79, while Japan’s Yamaguchi Tomonori took silver in 13:31.43.

Gulveer had earlier clocked 28:29.38 to win silver in the 10,000m, finishing behind Balew. The result also made him the first Indian to win two Asian Games medals in the men’s 10,000m, having taken bronze in the event at the 2023 Hangzhou Games.

He then added another silver in the 1500m, finishing in a personal best of 3:36.72. Japan’s Kazuto Iizawa won gold in an Asian Games record of 3:36.35, while compatriot Nagiya Mori claimed bronze.

Reflecting on his three-medal campaign, Gulveer said the difficult weather conditions in Nagoya did not trouble him as much because of the preparation and support he received from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).

“It turned out to be good because of the way we trained and came here. We had good weather for training, good support and a good coach. AFI has continuously supported us,” he said.

“After the Commonwealth Games, before the World Cross Country in January, AFI told me to continue practising there. I trained there continuously. Since we cannot stay in the US for six months, I came back to India for around a month for the Commonwealth Games, and then AFI told me to go back and continue training there. That has benefited me.”

Gulveer, who comes from an army background, said his initial tryst with running was driven by preparation for recruitment rather than dreams of becoming an international athlete. “I was preparing for recruitment. I did not have much knowledge about athletics. Then I joined the Army, and after joining the Army, things developed from there,” he said.

Asked when he first began dreaming of winning a medal for India, Gulveer preferred to look ahead rather than dwell on his achievements. “What happened today is over, so leave it. Now we will think about what to do next. We have to keep climbing the steps and forget what we have done in the past. We have to think about what we need to do next,” he said.

Gulveer also had a message for young athletes, stressing the importance of nutrition, discipline, and following professional guidance. “Eat a good diet and work hard. Follow what your coach tells you. My request to the younger athletes is to eat a good diet and not consume anything that is harmful. Check twice, check 10 times, and then ask your coach whether something is good or bad. Do not eat the wrong things. Eat the right things,” he said.

For Gulveer, the joy of his remarkable campaign will be shared most by his family and support team. “My mother and father will be the happiest. When I see them in the media, it feels good. My parents, my whole family, my coaches and the sports science team will all be happy. The US coach will also be happy with these three medals. AFI has supported us throughout,” he said.

Source: IANS