There was a time when Gulveer Singh wasn’t running for medals. He was running across fields in his village of Atrauli, Uttar Pradesh, helping his farmer father, finishing daily chores, and chasing a dream of joining the Indian Army for a secure future. What began as a necessity slowly turned into a calling. Every kilometre he covered built not just stamina, but belief that a boy from a small village could one day challenge the world’s best.
His journey was never glamorous. Life revolved around farming, discipline and sacrifice. After joining the Indian Army, Gulveer found the structure and support to sharpen his talent, but success still demanded years of relentless training. He spent long stretches away from his family, even missing precious moments like the birth of his daughter while preparing for international competitions. Yet, every sacrifice was made with one goal; to make India proud.
Before Glasgow, Gulveer had already begun rewriting Indian athletics. He became the Asian champion in both the 5,000m and 10,000m in 2025, broke national records in both events, became the first Indian to run a sub-13-minute 5,000m, a sub-four-minute mile, and even dipped below 60 minutes in the half marathon milestones once considered out of reach for Indian distance runners.
Then came the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where Gulveer produced the performance that changed Indian distance running forever. Battling relentless rain, he clocked 27:49.78 to win silver in the 10,000m, becoming the first Indian ever to stand on the Commonwealth podium in the event. A few days later, he refused to stop there. In a thrilling 5,000m finish, he surged to bronze in 13:24.95, edging out Kenya’s Cornelius Kemboi in a photo finish.
With those two races, Gulveer became the first Indian track and field athlete to win two medals in long-distance events at a single Commonwealth Games, proving that India could now compete with the traditional distance-running giants.
Yet, the medals didn’t satisfy him completely. After Glasgow, Gulveer summed up his ambition in one simple thought: he was happy to win, but he still wanted to hear the Indian national anthem from the top of the podium. That mindset perhaps explains why his story is bigger than medals. It is the story of a farmer’s son who first ran for survival, then for a job, and today runs to redefine what Indian long-distance running can achieve on the world stage.
