India's fastest man Gurindervir Singh on fan support ahead of Asian Games 2026
Gurindervir will begin his Asian Games campaign in the men’s 100m on September 24
As Gurindervir Singh prepares to take the track at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan, India’s fastest man has thanked Indian fans and groups like the Bharat Army for supporting the country’s athletes, saying their presence at major international competitions provides motivation rather than pressure.
Speaking exclusively on the Bharat Army Champions Unfiltered podcast ahead of his Asian Games campaign, Gurindervir said seeing Indian supporters turn up for athletics gives him an added push to perform for the country.
“It provides motivation, not pressure”
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“It doesn’t increase the pressure, it provides motivation,” Gurindervir said. “Having your own crowd there is very important. You can see it now, people are actually coming to watch because, in athletics, that wasn’t really the case before. Now that people have started coming to watch, it feels really good. Knowing that people are coming to see us makes me want to run even harder. It makes me want to give it my all. If 100% is the standard, I want to push to 110%.”
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Gurindervir will begin his Asian Games campaign in the men’s 100m on September 24, with the first round scheduled for 4:38 PM IST. If he progresses through the rounds, the semi-finals and final are scheduled for September 25.
That support will take on added significance in Aichi-Nagoya, where Gurindervir is set to line up against some of Asia’s leading sprinters. The Bharat Army, which has built a global community of Indian sports fans and followed Indian athletes across major sporting events, will be among those backing him as he takes on the continental stage.
From Patiala to India’s fastest man
For Gurindervir, the Asian Games are the latest chapter in a journey that has taken him from the school grounds of Patiala to becoming the first Indian man to officially break the 10.10-second barrier in the 100m. He clocked a national record of 10.09 seconds in Ranchi in May this year, establishing himself as India’s fastest man.
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His journey began much earlier, in a sporting family in Punjab. His father played volleyball, and his grandfather was a kabaddi player. As a child, Gurindervir would polish his father’s medals and trophies during Diwali and listen to stories about his sporting days. That early exposure eventually led him towards athletics, where he began competing in school events before progressing through the junior ranks.
One of the stories from those early years perhaps best captures the self-belief Gurindervir had even as a child.
He recalled watching athletics on television repeatedly, much to his mother’s frustration. One day, when she asked him to switch off the television, he told her, “You won’t let me watch TV now, but one day you’ll be looking for me on TV.”
A year later, he says, that is exactly what happened.
That belief in himself has remained a constant through his career. Gurindervir also spoke about his habit of visualising performances and recalled how, just minutes before one race, he told his coach, “Today, I’m going to run a 10.2.”
He ran 10.20 seconds.
On another occasion, when his coach asked him what he thought the winning time at the Nationals would be, Gurindervir replied, “You’re indirectly asking what time I’ll run.” He predicted 10.4 seconds and went on to run exactly that.
“I’ve seen it happen with my own eyes,” he told Bharat Army.
There is also a deeper motivation behind his journey. Gurindervir says he has often felt that he is carrying forward his father’s unfinished sporting dream. His father had played volleyball but had to leave the sport before reaching the level he believed he could have achieved.
“So, deep down, I’ve always felt I should fulfill the dream he left unfinished and play the game even better,” Gurindervir said. “So, it’s for me, for my country and for my father.”
Now, as he prepares to step onto the track in Aichi-Nagoya, the focus is firmly on the next race and the next barrier.
A successful campaign could see Gurindervir return to the track on September 25 for the semi-finals and final, with the possibility of adding an Asian Games medal to a season that has already seen him rewrite the Indian sprinting record books.
And as he takes his place on the starting line in Japan, he knows he will not be running alone.
Indian fans will be watching. The Bharat Army will be cheering. And Gurindervir says that support is exactly what makes him want to give even more.
When does Gurindervir Singh’s Asian Games 2026 campaign begin?
Gurindervir starts his campaign in the men’s 100m first round on September 24 at 4:38 PM IST, with the semi-finals and final scheduled for September 25 if he progresses.
What is Gurindervir Singh’s personal best in the 100m?
He clocked a national record of 10.09 seconds in Ranchi in May 2026, becoming the first Indian man to officially break the 10.10-second barrier.
What other national record does Gurindervir Singh hold besides the 100m?
Gurindervir also set the men’s 60m indoor national record, clocking 6.60 seconds at the 1st National Indoor Athletics Championships 2026 in Bhubaneswar, breaking an eight-year-old record.
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