View source for Geeta Zutshi

{{short description|Indian athlete}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
'''Geeta Zutshi''' (born 2 December 1956) is a former [[India]]n [[track and field]] athlete. She established several national and [[Asia]]n running records in the [[800 metres]] and [[1500 metres]] events.

Zutshi won the women's silver medals for the 800 m in 1982, and for the 1500 m in both 1978 and 1982.<ref>[http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/asg.htm Asian Games]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-02-08.</ref> As the top Indian woman athlete at the [[1982 Asian Games]] in [[New Delhi]], she took the oath on behalf of the competitors during the opening ceremony.<ref>[http://pib.nic.in/archive/50yrs/50phto/50k/isport6.html] {{deadlink|date=May 2021}}</ref> For her achievements she has been awarded the [[Arjuna award]] and the [[Padma Shri]].

She has inspired other Indian women, such as [[Bachendri Pal]], the first Indian woman to successfully climb [[Mount Everest]]. As a child, Pal began to aspire to national fame after seeing a newspaper photograph of Zutshi with Prime Minister [[Indira Gandhi]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tata.com/0_careers/our_people/20040809_pal.htm |title=Archived copy |access-date=2005-02-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050204194852/http://www.tata.com/0_careers/our_people/20040809_pal.htm |archive-date=2005-02-04 }}</ref>

She was [[coach (sport)|coached]] by [[Ilyas Babar|Mohammad Ilyas Babar]]. After 17 years in the [[United States]], she returned to India in July, 2002, and took over as coach of the Indian junior athletics team (800 m and 1500 m).

==International competitions==
{| {{AchievementTable}}
|-
|rowspan=2|1978
|rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the 1978 Asian Games|Asian Games]]
|rowspan=2|[[Bangkok]], Thailand
|bgcolor="gold"| 1st
|800 m
|-
|bgcolor="silver"| 2nd
|1500 m
|-
|rowspan=2|1981
|rowspan=2|[[1981 Asian Athletics Championships|Asian Championships]]
|rowspan=2|[[Tokyo]], Japan
|bgcolor="gold"| 1st
|800 m
|-
|bgcolor="silver"| 2nd
|1500 m
|-
|rowspan=2|1982
|rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the 1982 Asian Games|Asian Games]]
|rowspan=2|[[New Delhi]], India
|bgcolor="silver"| 2nd
|800 m
|-
|bgcolor="silver"| 2nd
|1500 m
|}

==See also==
* [[List of Indian sportswomen]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/zu/geeta-zutshi-1.html |title=Geeta Zutshi |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017100845/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/zu/geeta-zutshi-1.html |archive-date=2012-10-17 |url-status=dead}}
* [http://www.telegraphindia.com/1020918/asp/sports/story_1210197.asp The Telegraph (India)]

{{Footer Asian Games Champions 800 metres Women}}
{{Footer Asian Champions women's 800 metres}}

__NOTOC__
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{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Sports}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zutshi, Geeta}}
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:Indian female middle-distance runners]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian women]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian people]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes of India]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1980 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Asian Games gold medalists for India]]
[[Category:Asian Games silver medalists for India]]
[[Category:Asian Games medalists in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1978 Asian Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1982 Asian Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1978 Asian Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1982 Asian Games]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Arjuna Award]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing (living people)]]


{{India-athletics-bio-stub}}