Ram Singh Yadav

Ram Singh Yadav (born 7 November 1984) is an Indian marathon runner. Ram represented India at the 2012 Summer Olympics, London. He achieved the B qualification standard (2:18:00) by clocking a time of 2:16:59 at the 2012 Mumbai Marathon, which is also his best performance in this event. He is the second Indian athlete ever to be qualified for the marathon event of the Olympics. Before Yadav, Shivnath Singh was the Indian athlete who participated in the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. Ram is a havildar in the Indian Army.

Ram Singh
Ram Singh Yadav in the marathon at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London
Personal information
NationalityIndian
Born (1984-11-07) 7 November 1984
OccupationHavildar (Indian Army)
Sport
SportTrack and field
Event(s)Marathon

Personal life

Ram is from Babiyan village, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. His father was a fruit-seller in Mumbai. Ram married Urmila Yadav in 2001 and they have three children, Amit, Ankit and Alok. He is a havildar in the Indian Army and currently posted in Hyderabad’s Artillery Centre.[1] He trains at Pune-based Army Sports Institute.

Olympic qualification

Ram missed the B qualification standard of 2:18:00 in 2008 during the 2009 Mumbai Marathon for Beijing Olympics' marathon event by few seconds, and thus did not qualify.[2] He completed his race in 2:18:23 and finished 10th in the final standings.[3] But president of the Indian Olympic Association, Suresh Kalmadi, mistakenly announced that Ram had qualified for the Olympics, which was later corrected by the organisers.[4][5]

For the 2012 Summer Olympics, Ram underwent training for 45 days at a high-altitude training centre in Coonoor town of Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu. 2012 Mumbai Marathon was the first event he took part in after his training, the same event where he failed to claim an Olympic berth four years ago. Ram took 2:16:59 to finish the race, well under the B qualification standard of 2:18:00. He finished 12th overall in the final standings.[6] 2:16:59 is also the personal best of Ram.[7] Ram is only the second Indian athlete ever to be qualified for the marathon event of the Olympics. Shivnath Singh of Bihar was the first Indian athlete to participate in the Olympics marathon. He participated twice in the Olympic Games—1976 and 1980.[8][9]

Olympic Games
Main article: Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon

At the London 2012 Olympic Games, he completed the marathon with a time of 2:30:06 which placed him 78th in the final rankings. From a field of 105 starters, as many as 20 runners failed to finish the grueling marathon final, which was won by Uganda's Stephen Kiprotich in a time of 2:08:01.[10]

See also

References
  1. Naik, Shivani (16 July 2012). "'Unko bhaag-daud pasand hai. Woh kisi ki nahi sunenge". the Indian Express. New Delhi. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  2. Naik, Shivani (21 January 2008). "Dream Run din drowns Ram Singh Yadav's effort". The Indian Express. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  3. "Kenyan help for Ram Singh". The Hindu. 19 January 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  4. Vasavda, Mihir (5 December 2008). "One last time". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 21 July 2012. Ram Singh Yadav hopes to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics
  5. Vasavda, Mihir (16 January 2012). "Army's Ram Singh Yadav takes giant strides towards Olympic". Daily News and Analysis. Mumbai. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  6. "Ram Singh Yadav qualifies for London 2012". The Hindu. 15 January 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  7. "Athletes biographies – Yadav Ram Singh". iaaf.org. International Association of Athletics Federations. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  8. "Shivnath Singh was a brave runner with a heart of gold". The Times of India. New Delhi. 7 June 2003. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  9. "Ram Singh Yadav: Profiles 2012 London Olympics". Zee News. 16 July 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  10. ram-singh-yadav-finishes-78th-in-marathon
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