India's Animesh Kujur makes history, finishes 4th in Monaco Diamond League under-23 200m event

India’s fastest man, Animesh Kujur, etched his name in history on Friday by becoming the first Indian sprinter to compete in a Diamond League event. He participated in the U23 200m race at the Meeting Herculis EBS and finished fourth with an impressive timing of 20.55s, continuing his breakout 2025 season.

The race was won by Australian 17-year-old sensation Gout Gout, who registered a timing of 20.10s, while Botswana’s Collen Kebinatshipi (20.28s) and South Africa’s Naeem Jack (20.42s) finished second and third, respectively.

India’s Animesh Kujur makes history

The 22-year-old sprinter, who hails from Ghuitangar village in Chhattisgarh, has had a sensational 2025 season — setting national records in the 100m (10.18s), 200m (20.27s (w), 20.32 s) and 4x100m relay (38.69 s).

The Monaco Diamond League is one of the world’s most prestigious athletics meets, and this year’s event at the Stade Louis II featured nine Paris 2024 Olympic Champions, including sprint legends Noah Lyles, Letsile Tebogo, and pole vault world record holder Armand Duplantis.

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Animesh is the national record holder as well

Last week, Animesh shattered the 100m national record at the Dromia International Sprints Meet in Greece, becoming the first Indian man to dip under 10.20s. He clocked 10.18s, surpassing the previous mark of 10.20s set by fellow Reliance Foundation athlete Gurindervir Singh. Earlier this year, he also clinched bronze in the 200m at the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea.

Animesh is currently on a 6-week training-cum-competition exposure trip in Europe with his coach, Martin Owens, Head Coach at the Odisha Reliance Foundation High Performance Centre, and physiotherapist Jayesh Bane. The team has set up their training base at the Swiss Olympic Centre in Magglingen and competed in high quality meets in Geneva and Athens so far.

Moving forward, Animesh will be in action at the Spitzen Leichtathletik in Lucerne, Switzerland on 15th July. He will then be representing India at the World University Games in Germany in the 200m and 4x100m events.

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