Lalita Babar
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Lalita Shivaji Babar | ||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Indian | ||||||||||||||||||
| Born |
2 June 1989 Satara District, Maharashtra, India | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and field | ||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | 3000 metres steeplechase | ||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | 9:27.09 (Federation Cup National Athletics Championships 2016) NR | ||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| Updated on 24 August 2015. | |||||||||||||||||||
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Lalita Babar (born 2 June 1989) is an Indian long-distance runner. She was born in a small village in the Satara district, Maharashtra. She predominantly competes in the 3000 metres steeplechase and is the current Indian national record holder and the reigning Asian Champion in the same event.
Babar was named as the Sports Person of the Year in the India Sports Awards 2015 organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports of India. She is currently supported by Anglian Medal Hunt Company.
Early Life and Junior Career
Born in Satara district of Maharashtra, Lalita Shivaji Babar belongs to the family of farmers and trains under Nikolai Snesarev.[1] She was born in an area which was regularly affected by droughts, which adversely affects the agriculture in the area.[2]
Babar started her career in athletics as a long-distance runner at a young age. She won her first Gold medal in the U-20 National Championships at Pune in 2005.[3]
She is currently supported by Anglian Medal Hunt Company, a sports management company based in New Delhi.[4]
Career
Babar began her career in track and field athletics as a long-distance runner.
In 2014, she became the hat-trick winner of the Mumbai Marathon.[5] Determined to win a medal in multi-discipline events like the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games, she switched to 3000 metres steeplechase in January 2014, following her win at the marathon. At the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, she won the bronze medal clocking 9:35.37 in the final. In the process, she broke the national record held by Sudha Singh.[6] But after disqualification of the gold medallist Ruth Jebet from Bahrain, Lalita was promoted to the silver medal.[7]
At the 2015 Asian Championships, Babar won the gold medal clocking 9:34.13 and broke her own personal record, the Indian national record and the games record. In the process, she qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics.[8]
Babar went on to shatter the national record again at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing with a time of 9:27.86 in her qualifying heat.[9] Being the first Indian woman to qualify for the steeplechase final, she placed eighth in the final.[1][10]
In April 2016, she again bettered her personal best and the national record with a time of 9:27.09 at the Federation Cup National Athletics Championships in New Delhi.[11]
Competition record
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  India | |||||
| 2014 | Asian Games | Incheon, South Korea | 2nd | 3000 metres steeplechase | 9:35.37 |
| 2015 | Asian Championships | Wuhan, China | 1st | 3000 metres steeplechase | 9:34.13 |
| World Championships | Beijing, China | 8th | 3000 metres steeplechase | 9:29.64 | |
Awards
Sports Person of the Year Awards (2015) - India Sports Awards 2015 (FICCI and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports)[12][13]
See also
References
- 1 2 "5 Things About Lalita Babar – 1st Indian to Reach Steeplechase Finals, World Athletics Championships - The Better India". The Better India. Retrieved 2015-11-02.
- ↑ "Family Battling Drought, but Lalita on a High with Asian Athletics Gold". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2015-11-02.
- ↑ No Challenge is steep for Satara Girl Lalita Babar
- ↑ "Lalita Babar on course for Rio 2016 despite IAAF loss". Sportskeeda. 27 August 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ↑ "Lalita Babar sets new course record; completes hat-trick of titles at Mumbai Marathon". Daily News and Analysis. 19 January 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
- ↑ "Babar’s decision to choose steeplechase pays off handsomely". Bangalore Mirror. 28 September 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
- ↑ "Asian Games 2014: Lalita wins silver, Sudha bronze in steeplechase". IBNLive. Retrieved 2015-11-02.
- ↑ Rayan, Stan (6 June 2015). "Vikas Gowda and Lalita Babar strike gold". The Hindu. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
- ↑ Women's 3000 metres steeplechase heats results
- ↑ Women's 3000 metres steeplechase results
- ↑ "Lalita Babar Sets National Mark, Sudha Singh Qualifies For Olympics". NDTV. 29 April 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ↑ "India Sports Awards: Lalita Babar named Sports Person of the Year". The Indian Express. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ↑ "Lalita Babar named Sportsperson of the Year in India Sports Awards". The Times of India. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
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