>Malluchronicle at 14:51, 10 May 2021

2021-05-10T14:51:00Z

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{{short description|Indian athlete}}
{{Other people|Anil Kumar}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2019}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| honorific_prefix = [[Sapper]]
| name = Anil Kumar
| honorific_suffix =
| image =
| imagesize =
| alt =
| caption =
| headercolor =
| fullname =
| nicknames =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1978|8|28}}
| birth_place = [[Alappuzha district]], [[Kerala]], India
| nationality = {{IND}}
| sport = [[Track and field]]
| event = [[100 metres]], [[200 metres]]
| club = Services
| pb = '''100 m''': 10.21 ([[Bangalore]] 2000) '''[[List of Indian records in athletics|NR]]'''<br/>'''200 m''': 20.73 (Bangalore 2000)
| height = {{height|m=1.74}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ku/anil-kumar-prakash-1.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418031615/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ku/anil-kumar-prakash-1.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2020-04-18|title=Anil Kumar Prakash Biography and Statistics|date=|publisher=[[Sports Reference LLC]]|accessdate=2009-09-06}}</ref>
| weight = {{convert|75|kg|lb st|abbr=on}}
| country = India
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{IND}}}}
{{MedalSport|Men's [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Asian Athletics Championships|Asian Championships]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2000 Asian Athletics Championships|2000 Jakarta]]|[[2000 Asian Athletics Championships – Men's 100 metres|100 m]]}}
| module = {{Infobox military person|embed=yes
| allegiance = {{Flag|India}}
| branch = {{Army|India}}
| serviceyears =
| rank = [[Sapper]]
| unit = [[Madras Engineer Group]]
}}
}}

[[Sapper]] '''Anil Kumar Prakash''' (born 28 August 1978) is a retired Indian [[Sprint (running)|sprinter]]. He held the [[100 metres]] national record of 10.30 s set at the National Circuit Athletic Meet held in [[New Delhi]] in 2005 which was broken in 2016.<ref name="toi_aug05">{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1210078.cms|title=Anil Kumar breaks the National 100-m record|date=2005-08-25|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|accessdate=2009-09-05}}</ref><ref name="hindu_jul00">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2000/07/18/stories/07180112.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105090619/http://www.hindu.com/2000/07/18/stories/07180112.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-11-05|title=Anil Kumar runs a one horse race|date=2000-07-18|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|accessdate=2009-09-05|location=Chennai, India|first=Avinash|last=Nair}}</ref><ref name="afio">{{cite web|url=http://www.indianathletics.org/isr.php |title=Official Website of Athletics Federation of India: NATIONAL RECORDS as on 21.3.2009 |publisher=Athletics Federation of INDIA |accessdate=2009-09-05 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090805174209/http://indianathletics.org/isr.php |archivedate=2009-08-05 |df= }}</ref>

He previously held the National Record at 10.21 seconds.

==Early life==
Kumar was born on 28 August 1978 in [[Alappuzha district]] in the Indian State of [[Kerala]].<ref name="open" /> He studied at [[T. K. Madhava Memorial College]], [[Nangiarkulangara]]. He took up [[decathlon]] in his college days and later took to sprints inspired by the successes of the [[P. T. Usha]].<ref name="ie_jul00">{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/20000730/isp30027.html|title=The fastest Indian sprinter does not talk big, he simply performs|date=2000-07-29|publisher=[[The Indian Express]]|accessdate=2009-09-05}}</ref>

In 1994, he joined the [[Madras Engineer Group]] via sports quota. Running in the Army Championships the same year, he was timed at 10.30 seconds in the 100 metres heats on a handheld stopwatch, and attributing it to human error, a second was added to make it 11.30 seconds. In the semifinal and final, he was again timed at 10.30 seconds.<ref name="open">{{cite news|last1=Pillai|first1=Madhavankutty|title=The Fastest Indian|url=http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/sports/the-fastest-indian|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101004022253/http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/sports/the-fastest-indian|archivedate=4 October 2010|accessdate=14 August 2016|work=Open|date=2 October 2010}}</ref> In 1996, at an event in [[Hyderabad]], again with the handheld stopwatches, he was timed at 9.99 seconds, which however was not considered official and hence couldn't be attributed as a record. The "perplexed people" had to measure the track if it was really 100 metres.<ref name="open"/>

==Professional career==
Kumar's first big success came at National Open Championships in 1997 in [[Gandhinagar]], when he broke Rajeev Balakrishnan's record of 100 metres to become the fastest man in India.<ref name="hindu_may02">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2002/05/06/stories/2002050604392000.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020180721/http://hindu.com/2002/05/06/stories/2002050604392000.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=2007-10-20|title=Anil Kumar, Saraswathi emerge fastest|date=2002-05-06|accessdate=2009-09-06|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|location=Chennai, India}}</ref> Injury kept him off the field for some time before success came again in 1999 at the Fifth National Games in Manipur when he clocked 10.58 s in the 100 metres and a 21.35 s in 200 metres.<ref name="ie_jul00" /><ref name="ie_feb99">{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/19990221/isp21044.html|title=Anil Kumar emerges fastest |date=1999-02-21|newspaper=The Indian Express|accessdate=2009-09-06}}</ref> In the same year on 15 August, Kumar broke the National record for 100 m when he clocked 10.33 s while finishing behind [[Sri Lanka]]’s [[Chinthaka De Soysa]] (10.29) (Sreelankan National record) in an International Circuit Meet held at [[Chennai]]. In 2000, he posted his personal best time of 10.21 s in [[Bangalore]] but in the absence of [[Use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport|doping]] control the time was not ratified by the Athletics Federation of India.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iaaf.org/news/Kind=2/newsId=31854.html|title=Kumar improves Indian 100m record|publisher=International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF)|accessdate=2009-09-06}}</ref>

On 17 July 2000, Kumar broke the [[200 metres]] National record with an effort of 20.73 s at the National Circuit Athletic Meet held in Bangalore. He erased the then National record of 21.04 s in the name of Ajay Raj Singh, set in the Lucknow inter-State meet in 1999.<ref name="hindu_jul00" />

On 1 May 2002, in the National Circuit Athletic Meet at the [[Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Delhi|Nehru Stadium]] in [[New Delhi]], India's fastest runner equaled his own National record in [[100 metres]] with a time of 10.33 s.<ref name="hindu_may02b">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2002/05/02/stories/2002050202192000.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105092051/http://www.hindu.com/2002/05/02/stories/2002050202192000.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-11-05|title=Anil Kumar equals his own record|date=2002-05-02|accessdate=2009-09-06|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|location=Chennai, India}}</ref> In the same month, Kumar came up with a commendable performance to win the 100 m dash in the second domestic circuit meet in Bangalore with an effort of 10.46 s.<ref name="hindu_may02" /> In May 2004, he won the 200 m sprint in the Federation Cup Athletics Championships at the Nehru Stadium when he clocked 21.02 s.<ref name="hindu_mar04">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2004/03/19/stories/2004031907922000.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040501053234/http://www.hindu.com/2004/03/19/stories/2004031907922000.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=2004-05-01|title=Anil Kumar steals the show|date=2004-03-19|accessdate=2009-09-06|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|location=Chennai, India}}</ref> A few weeks later he crowned again in the 200 m dash by clocking 20.84 s at the first ONGC National Athletics Circuit Meet in [[Delhi]].<ref name="rediff_04">{{cite news|url=http://www.rediff.com/sports/2004/apr/15ath.htm|title=Binu attains Olympic qualification mark|date=2004-04-15|newspaper=[[Rediff.com]]|accessdate=2009-09-06}}</ref>

He is currently a trainer at [[Sports Authority of India]], [[Kollam]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Rejected! 7 years after applying for job, Kerala Police reply to Olympian Anil Kumar|url=https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2020/08/24/olympian-anil-kumar-kerala-police-job-application.html|access-date=2021-05-10|website=OnManorama}}</ref>

==Achievements==
{| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}}
|-
!colspan="6"|Representing {{IND}}
|-
|2000
|[[2000 Asian Championships in Athletics|Asian Championships]]
|[[Jakarta, Indonesia]]
|bgcolor="silver" | 2nd
|100 m
|[[2000 Asian Athletics Championships – Men's 100 metres|10.35]]
|-
|2005
|National Circuit Athletics Meet
|[[New Delhi, India]]
|bgcolor="gold" | 1st
|100 m
|10.30
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{iaaf name|id=175398}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prakash, Anil Kumar}}
[[Category:Malayali people]]
[[Category:Athletes from Kerala]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes of India]]
[[Category:People from Alappuzha district]]
[[Category:Indian male sprinters]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:1978 births]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Arjuna Award]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Asian Games]]
[[Category:Asian Games competitors for India]]

Anil Kumar Prakash - Revision history

>Malluchronicle at 14:51, 10 May 2021