Gulveer Singh's night in Tokyo was one of heartbreak, courage, and lessons for the future. The Asian champion came agonisingly close to creating history, missing out on a berth in the men's 5000m final at the World Athletics Championships 2025 by just 0.19 seconds on Friday (September 19).
In Heat 2, Gulveer ran shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the best in the world, clocking 13:42.34 to finish ninth, just behind Norway's double Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who grabbed the last qualifying spot with 13:42.15.
For much of the race, Gulveer looked like a man on a mission. At 1000m, he was running third, and by 2900m he had surged to second, trailing only the USA's Grant Fisher by fractions of a second.
The Asian Games medalist was fearless,
even leading the pack briefly. But the final lap told a different story a slight lapse cost him dearly and denied him the chance to become the first Indian ever to reach a 5000m World Championships final.
This performance, however, is only the latest chapter in Gulveer's phenomenal rise. Earlier this year, he smashed the Asian short-track record with a stunning 12:59.77 at Boston University, becoming the first Asian to dip under 13 minutes. He followed it up with a dominant gold at the Asian Championships in Gumi, setting a meet record of 13:24.77.
Speaking after the race, his coach Younus Khan offered perspective and praise in equal measure. "Gulveer Singh's performance was decent today, and he ran the last 2 km in 2:26. Even Jakob barely managed to make it to the final otherwise, he too could have been out," Younus told myKhel.
But Younus, who is also the coach of Sawan Barwal (the 2025 National Games gold medalist in the 10,000m), was candid about where things slipped away. "In the last 10 metres, Gulveer turned back to look and that's where he made a mistake. He probably lost count and thought he was safely in. If he hadn't looked back, he might have finished in the top 8. "
Tokyo may have been a near miss, but for Gulveer Singh, this is just the beginning. The hunger is visible and the next time he steps on the track, he'll know exactly what not to do.
