Manjit Singh (born 1 September 1989;[1] also known as Manjit Singh Chahal) is an Indian middle-distance runner who specialises in the 800 metres and 1500 metres events. He represented India at the 2018 Asian Games where he won the gold in the 800 metres event at Jakarta.[2]
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Manjit Singh Chahal | ||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Indian | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 1 September 1989 Ujhana, Haryana, India | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 69 kg (152 lb) | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Country |  India | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | 800 metres, 1500 metres | ||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Amrish Kumar Adhana | ||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | 800 m: 1:46.15 (Jakarta 2018) 1500 m: 3:42.24 (Patiala 2018) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||
| Updated on 30 August 2018 | |||||||||||||||
Personal life
editManjit was born in Ujhana village, Jind district, Haryana, to Randhir Chahal and Bimala Devi.[3] He grew his passion for athletics from his father only, Randhir who himself was a field athlete, in discus throw and shot put. Manjit is married, have a son, names Abhir with wife Kiran. In his spare time he used to help his father in dairy, cattle and agriculture farming.[4] He had a two-year contract job with ONGC from 2013 to 2016.[5]
Career
edit2013−2017
editIn 2013 Manjit took part in his first international event, in the 2013 Asian Athletics Championships, at Pune, where he finished 4th place in the Men's 800 metres final clocking 1:49.70 mins. In 2014, he bagged a silver in the 800 metres in Federation Cup, but failed to qualify for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.[6] After a long injury for one and half year, he took part in the National Inter-state Championship at Hyderabad winning silver then at Guntur and bettered his 800 m time, clocking 1:48.04 mins and winning silver on July 16, 2017. In the same event, on 18 July, he competed in the 1500m and finished with a timing 3:49.30 which was his personal best at that time.[7]
2018
editOn March 7, 2018, in the Patiala Federation Cup, he competed in both 800 m and 1500 m and bettered his timings of 1500 m to 3:42.24 and qualified for 1500 m in the 2018 Asian Games. On 27 August 2018, Manjit Singh, stunned everyone and compatriot Jinson Johnson to win gold in the Men's 800 metres at the Asian Games after 36 years for India where he clocked 1:46.15 as his personal best.[8]
International competitions
edit| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Representing India
| |||||
| 2013 | Asian Athletics Championships (Heat 1) | Pune, India | H-2nd | 800 m | 1:49.12 min |
| Asian Athletics Championships (Final) | 4th | 800 m | 1:49.70 min | ||
| 2018 | Asian Games | Jakarta, Indonesia | 
|
800 m | 1:46.15 min |
References
edit- ^ "MANJIT SINGH". IIAF. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
- ^ "Asian Games: Unheralded Manjit's unexpected gold steals the show after Sindhu's silver". The Times of India (TOI). Press Trust of India (PTI). 28 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
- ^ Sheoran, Maha Singh (28 August 2018). "छोरे ने जकार्ता में रचा इतिहास और यहां बरस पड़ीं अांखें, गोल्ड जीत निकाली पुरानी टीस". Dainik Jagran (in Hindi). Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
- ^ "Lost His Job, Herded Cattle & Won Gold For India: Manjit Singh Is a True Inspiration!". The Better India. 29 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- ^ "Asian Games 2018: After winning gold, Manjit Singh will see first glimpse of his five-month-old son". Indian Express. 29 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- ^ "Lost His Job, Herded Cattle & Won Gold For India: Manjit Singh Is a True Inspiration!". The Better India. 29 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- ^ "MANJIT SINGH". IIAF. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
- ^ "Asian Games: Surprise, Surprise! Manjit Pips Jinson To Win 800m Gold, Breaks 36 Year Old Jinx". News18. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
