CWG 2022: how Avinash Sable ended 24 years of Kenyan hegemony at Birmingham 2022

Most fans expected Indian athletes to dominate in wrestling or boxing but not many saw them fetch medals in track and field events at Commonwealth Games 2022. But the athletes proved their doubters wrong.

Avinash Sable, who had to walk a distance of 12km from home to school and back from the time he was 8, made the world sit up and take notice of him when he won India its 4th medal in athletics at the Birmingham Games by clinching silver in the men's 3000-metre steeplechase.

What made it even more special was the fact that Kenyan runners had ensured a podium clean-sweep in the event in the last six editions of the CWG. Sable ended their hegemony with a breathtaking run in the final.

After his personal best timing helped Sable end up on the podium, he agreed that he wanted to prove it's not just the Kenyans and Ethiopians who win in long-distance races. An Indian can win too. And he surely did it in style. If not the biggest, it certainly is one of the biggest achievements for an Indian at this year's CWG.

Also read: Is winning a bronze or silver not enough? An emotional Pooja Gehlot sparks a debate