After silver in U-20 Worlds, Amit Khatri trains eyes on Asiad, CWG medals

World
U-20
Athletics
Championships:
India’s
Amit
Khatri
clinches
silver
in
10km
race
walk

Son
of
a
havildar-ranked
Indian
defence
force
personnel,
Khatri
clocked
42
minutes
17.94
seconds
to
finish
behind
host
country’s
Heristone
Wanyoni
(42:10.84)
in
men’s
10000m
race
on
Saturday.

This
was
India’s
only
sixth
medal
in
U20
World
Championships.
Seema
Antil
(bronze
in
discus
throw,
2002),
Navjeet
Kaur
Dhillon
(bronze
in
discus
throw,
2014),
Olympic
champion
Neeraj
Chopra
(gold
in
javelin
throw,
2016)
and
Hima
Das
(gold
in
400m,
2018)
were
the
medal
winners
earlier
before
the
mixed
4x400m
relay
team
win
a
bronze
in
this
edition
on
Wednesday.

“I
learnt
a
lot
from
this
championships,
got
one
warning
also
(during
race).
I
will
now
work
hard
for
Commonwealth
Games
and
Asian
Games
next
year,”
the
17-year-old
from
Ismaila
village
in
Haryana’s
Rohtak
district
said
at
a
virtual
press
conference.

The
2022
Asian
Games
in
Hangzhou
in
China
is
expected
to
have
20km
race
walk
event
and
Khatri’s
personal
coach
has
told
PTI
that
his
ward
will
start
training
for
the
event
later
this
year
to
be
able
to
compete
in
the
national
championship
early
next
year.

But
the
2022
Birmingham
CWG
will
have
10000m
(track
event
just
like
in
this
U20
World
Championship)
race
walk
event
instead
of
20km
event.
Khatri
had
come
into
the
championships
as
world
number
one
in
U20
rankings
but
he
could
not
produce
his
best
as
his
Kenyan
rival
pulled
ahead
of
him
with
less
than
two
laps
left
in
the
race
to
win
the
gold.

“It
was
my
first
international
event
and
so
I
was
nervous.
It
was
everything
first
time
for
me,
the
opponents,
the
conditions.
My
mind
was
disturbed
and
suddenly
he
overtook
me
and
I
could
not
catch
him.

Amit
Khatri’s
coach
wants
his
ward
to
be
included
in
TOPS,
sets
sights
on
2024
Olympics

“I
was
facing
breathing
problems
because
of
high
altitude
and
also
I
lost
time
while
going
for
water
bottle
at
water
points,
it
slipped
from
my
hands.
But
for
these
things,
I
would
have
won
the
gold.”

He
said
Olympic
champion
javelin
thrower
Neeraj
Chopra
began
with
a
gold
in
the
junior
world
championships
and
he
had
also
wanted
to
do
the
same.

Asked
about
any
strategy
chalked
out
before
the
race,
he
said,
“There
was
no
particular
strategy.
I
had
come
here
to
win
a
medal
but
wanted
a
gold.
There
was
no
target
time
in
mind.
It
was
home
conditions
for
the
Kenyan
and
I
was
facing
breathing
problems
at
the
high
altitude
conditions
here.”

Khatri
said
he
was
not
good
at
studies
and
so
he
wanted
to
pick
up
sport
when
he
was
young.
“I
started
with
running
but
later
found
race
walking
to
my
liking.
I
joined
CS
Rathi
academy
(at
Bahadurgarh)
and
now
I
am
with
Chandan
Singh
(former
India
race
walker)
sir
as
coach.”

Considering
Khatri’s
humble
family
background,
Chandan
requested
the
Sports
Authority
of
India
to
include
his
ward
in
the
Target
Olympic
Podium
Scheme
development
group.
Asked
about
this,
Khatri
simply
said,
“It
will
be
good
if
it
happens.”