India’s Gulveer Singh, on Monday, set a new men’s 5000m national record at the 2024 Portland Track Festival – a world athletics continental tour bronze level event – in the United States.
Singh, who had won a bronze medal in 10000m at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games last year, clocked an impressive 13:18.92 mins to shatter the Indian national record in the event.
The previous national record in the men’s 5000m stood at 13:19.30 mins, set by Avinash Sable in May 2023.
The 26-year-old Singh shaved off nearly five seconds from his previous personal best, which stood at 13:23.78, to finish second in the competition behind Dylan Jacobs.
Coincidentally Sable was also slated to compete in the event, but ended with a DNF – did not finish – against his name.
The other Indian in contention, Kartik Kumar, clocked 13:41.07s to finish 17th in the race.
Singh also walked away with a prize money of $500 from the competition, thanks to his second place finish.