When the story of Indian athletics is written in decades to come, Sandeep Kumar’s name will feature as one of endurance, adaptability, and quiet resilience.
A three-time Olympian, national record holder, and Commonwealth Games medallist, the Haryana-born race walker has carved out a career that spans nearly two decades, reflecting both the progress of Indian athletics and the shifting landscape of race walking on the global stage.
Early Life and Entry into Sport
Born on May 1, 1986, in Mahendragarh, Haryana, Sandeep Kumar’s journey into race walking was not one of childhood dreams but of circumstance and discipline. It was after joining the Indian Army, stationed at the Jat Regiment Center, that he discovered the sport that would define his life.
Like many Indian athletes, the armed forces provided the structure, coaching, and stability that transformed raw endurance into professional potential. The Army’s disciplined environment not only shaped his personality but also gave him a platform to compete, laying the foundation for his rise to the national stage.
Records and Milestones at Home
Sandeep’s name has been synonymous with Indian race walking records. He set the national record in the men’s 50km race walk with a time of 3:55:59 in 2017, improving on his own previous mark. It was a performance that qualified him for the London World Championships that year and underlined his place as India’s premier long-distance walker.
In 2021, he set another benchmark in the 20km event with a time of 1:20:16, which booked his ticket to the Tokyo Olympics. That record has since been broken by Akshdeep Singh, who walked 1:19:55 in 2023 a sign of how the sport continues to grow in India, with younger athletes building upon the standards Sandeep set.
His crowning national achievement came at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, where he clinched bronze in the 10,000m race walk with a personal best of 38:49.21. At 36, the medal was proof of his remarkable longevity and his ability to remain competitive across distances.
The Setbacks of a Demanding Sport
Race walking is as technical as it is demanding, and Sandeep’s career has not been without heartbreak. At the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, he was disqualified in the men’s 50km race after receiving three warnings for technical violations a stark reminder of the razor-thin margins that define this discipline. Unlike endurance running, race walking demands precise form, with infractions for bent knees or loss of ground contact. For an athlete, the line between a podium finish and a disqualification can be as small as a single misstep under fatigue.
Sandeep Kumar’s Olympic journey is itself a story of adaptability. He made his debut at the 2012 London Olympics in the 50km race walk, the event that was long considered the ultimate test of endurance. Four years later in Rio, he again lined up in the 50km and finished 35th.
But it was in Tokyo 2020 (held in 2021) that he made his boldest tactical move: switching to the 20km event. For an athlete trained for ultra-endurance, moving to the much faster-paced 20km required a complete recalibration of training, rhythm, and mindset. His 23rd-place finish in Tokyo, clocking 1:25:07, may not have brought headlines back home, but it was an impressive demonstration of reinvention on the world’s biggest stage.
If Sandeep’s career has been defined by anything, it is his ability to adapt. The International Olympic Committee’s decision to drop the men’s 50km race walk from Paris 2024, in pursuit of gender parity, sent shockwaves across the discipline. For athletes like Sandeep who had dedicated years to the 50km, it was akin to removing the marathon from athletics.
In its place, World Athletics introduced the 35km race walk, which while recognized at World Championships, does not feature at the Olympics. For veterans like Sandeep, the choice was stark—adjust to the 20km for Olympic contention or embrace the new 35km discipline. True to form, he chose both. His personal best in the 35km stands at 2:35:06, and he will line up in this event at the upcoming Tokyo 2025 World Championships, marking his fourth appearance at the global meet.
World Championships Record
Sandeep’s consistency at the World Championships underscores his longevity:
- 2015 Beijing – 50km Race Walk, 26th place
- 2017 London – 50km Race Walk, qualified with national record
- 2022 Oregon – 20km Race Walk, 40th place (after serving time in the penalty zone for technique infractions)
- 2025 Tokyo – Qualified for the 35km Race Walk, his fourth appearance
That progression reflects both the changes in the sport and his personal reinvention at each stage.
For Indian athletics, Sandeep Kumar represents much more than medals and records. He is a bridge between generations pioneering national standards in race walking and now watching as younger athletes like Akshdeep Singh and others raise the bar further.
His three Olympic appearances and Commonwealth Games medal remain career highlights, but his truest legacy lies in how he responded to challenges. Whether it was disqualification at the Asian Games, the loss of his pet 50km event, or the rise of younger rivals, Sandeep’s answer was always the same: adapt and endure.
At 39, Sandeep Kumar stands at a unique crossroads. His qualification for the 2025 World Championships is itself a triumph of persistence, a reminder that in sport, longevity is as much a victory as medals.
For India’s next generation of race walkers, his journey provides a roadmap how to use institutional support, how to reinvent in the face of change, and how to sustain oneself across multiple Olympic cycles.
Sandeep Kumar’s story is ultimately one of resilience. From the dusty lanes of Mahendragarh to the world’s greatest arenas, he has carried the tricolor with dignity. He has broken records, suffered setbacks, reinvented himself, and endured through times when the very identity of his event was under threat.
As he prepares for what may be his final World Championships in Tokyo 2025, his career stands as a lesson in adaptability and perseverance. For Indian sport, his name will forever be linked with the evolution of race walking a veteran who refused to be left behind.
