Bhubaneswar, July 12: India’s fastest man, Animesh Kujur, etched his name into Indian athletics history by becoming the first Indian sprinter to compete at a Diamond League event, participating in the U23 200m race at the Meeting Herculis EBS (Monaco Diamond League) on Friday evening. Animesh clocked an impressive 20.55s to finish fourth, continuing his breakout 2025 season.
The 22-year-old sprinter from Ghuitangar village in Chhattisgarh, who trains at the Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High Performance Centre in Bhubaneswar, has had a sensational season—setting national records in the 100m (10.18s), 200m (20.27s (w), 20.32 s) and 4x100m relay (38.69 s)
The Monaco Diamond League is one of the world’s most prestigious athletics meets, and this year’s event at the Stade Louis II featured nine Paris 2024 Olympic Champions, including sprint legends Noah Lyles, Letsile Tebogo, and pole vault world record holder Armand Duplantis
Last week, Animesh shattered the 100m national record at the Dromia International Sprints Meet in Greece, becoming the first Indian man to dip under 10.20s. He clocked 10.18s, surpassing the previous mark of 10.20s set by fellow Reliance Foundation athlete Gurindervir Singh. Earlier this year, he also clinched bronze in the 200m at the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea.
Animesh is currently on a 6-week training-cum-competition exposure trip in Europe with his coach Martin Owens, Head Coach at the Odisha Reliance Foundation High Performance Centre, and physiotherapist Jayesh Bane. The team has set up their training base at the Swiss Olympic Centre in Magglingen and competed in high quality meets in Geneva and Athens so far.
Moving forward, Animesh will be in action at the Spitzen Leichtathletik in Lucerne, Switzerland on 15th July. He will then be representing India at the World University Games in Germany in the 200m and 4x100m events.
