Decoding the profile of Indian steeplechaser Avinash Sable

• Avinash Sable, a 29-year-old steeplechaser from India, made history at the Paris Olympics, advancing to the final round despite falling short of his personal best.

• Born into a farming family and once working on construction sites, Sable’s journey to the Olympics included a switch from cross-country running to steeplechase, significant weight loss, and overcoming an ankle injury.

• His achievements include breaking a 37-year-old national record and becoming the first Indian male steeplechaser to qualify for the World Championships since 1991.

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He finished fifth in his heat (Source: X/@Olympics.com)

What’s the story

India’s track and field athlete Avinash Sable has made it to the final of the men’s 3000m steeplechase final at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

He finished fifth in his heat with a timing of 8:15.43 on Monday (August 5).

Sable became the first Indian man to qualify for the Olympic final of the steeplechase event.

Here we decode his profile and accomplishments.

A stunning finish for Sable

For the unversed, the steeplechase event consists of three heats, with the top five athletes from each heat advancing to the final round.

Sable, who was placed in Heat 2, had a close competition with USA’s Matthew Wilkinson for the fifth place.

However, the latter eventually finished more than a second behind Sable. Wilkinson clocked 8:16.82.

The final will take place on August 8.

Sable falls short of his personal best

Though the 29-year-old Sable put up an emphatic show, his timing fell short of his personal best of 8:09.91 minutes, which he had accomplished at the Paris Diamond League last month.

Notably, he led the race in the initial laps at the Paris Olympics before strategically adjusting his pace to ensure his qualification for the next round.

Sable’s humble background

Sable, who hails from the Beed district of Maharashtra, was born in a family of farmers.

His early days were full of hardships as he even worked on brick kilns and construction sites to support his family.

After finishing his 12th, he joined the 5 Mahar regiment of Indian Army in 2013-14.

How Sable get into steeplechase?

Sable first participated in inter-army cross-country running in 2015.

He subsequently switched to steeplechase under trainer Amrish Kumar.

Sable, who was overweight, lost around 20kg in three months, before joining the national camp where Nikolai Snesarev trained him.

In 2018, Sable went back to coach Kumar. Notably, the athlete failed to qualify for the 2018 Asian Games due to an ankle injury.

Here are his accomplishments

He clocked 8:29.80 at the 2018 National Open Championships in Bhubaneswar.

With this, Sable broke the 37-year-old national record of 8:30.88 held by Gopal Saini.

The Indian ace scripted a new national record of 8:28.94 in March 2019.

Later that year, he became the first male steeplechaser from India to qualify for the World Championships since 1991.

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