OP Jaisha resets own record
OP Jaisha clocked 2:34.43 in the women’s marathon at World Athletics Championships. (Source: AP)
Just before she boarded her plane to Beijing for the World Championships, OP Jaisha made her customary phone call to her husband Gurmeet Singh. The pre-tournament conversation is always strictly business – entailing the 32-year-old marathoner’s personal goal for an upcoming meet.
“This time she said she’s going to break her own national record,” says Gurmeet,. And so it happened that her 18th place finish at the 42 km event was clocked at 2:34.43, almost three minutes faster than the mark she set in January.
Lalita Babar makes history, breaks national mark- National Games: In the final race of her career, Preeja Sreedharan wins silver
Dutee on track for comeback
OP Jaisha wins gold, even as stars pull out
Seema Punia bags discus throw gold; steeplechase bronze for Naveen Kumar
Kheta Ram sets meet record in 5000m to qualify for Asian Games
It’s been just ten months since the runner took up the long distance event. Earlier she earned her keep as the prime 1500 and 5000 metre runner in the country, winning bronze medals in the events at the 2014 and 2006 Asian Games respectively. Yet the switch to the road event has found a new calling for Jaisha despite the various changes she has to undergo in her running strategy. “Every distance requires different set of training. Jaisha has no difficulty in adopting the ever changing event training requirements,” says commentator Rahul Pawar.
The most blatant change was the rapid increase in weekly mileage during practice sessions. The trio of Jaisha, Lalita Babar and Sudha Singh complete 250 km each week under Dr Nicolai Snesarev’s tutelage. “When she was running shorter distances, she’d only cover about 110 km a week. So it’s more than doubled. She’s also had to learn to use her speed wisely,” asserts Gurmeet.
Pre-race instructions from the Belarussian coach in fact, revolved around the athlete’s pace itself. “The coach had told us to cut down on our last time in from Mumbai. The big picture was to get into a good rhythm and then try and bring in some speed. I think the first 10 km meters went slow but that was across the field. I picked up a little after that,” says Jaisha.
Breaking her own national record in just her second race has announced her presence on the marathon field. And while she had to unlearn a few strategies from her previous events, the experience from those disciplines still comes in use. The training regime from the 5000 metre race has given her the ability to maintain her pace without losing much energy. The 1500 metre event in turn, still gives her the burst of pace when needed.
