Bapi Hansda is a rising star in the world of Indian Athletics and recently won a medal at the Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Uzbekistan, find out more about the young athlete’s brief biography
Bapi won a silver medal in the men’s 400m hurdles event last month at the Asian Under-18 Youth Athletics Championships.
Who is Odisha athlete Bapi Hansda: Biography, age, family, game and sport, hometown
Congratulations to Bapi Hansda from Odisha for winning the Silver Medal in the 400m Hurdles at the 5th Asian Youth Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan! Your hard work and dedication have paid off, inspiring young athletes everywhere to pursue their dreams. pic.twitter.com/QjAwrZcP5w
— Himanshu Kr Lal, IPS (@himanshulalips) May 1, 2023
Bapi Hansda from Odisha wins the Silver Medal in 400m Hurdles at the 5th Asian Youth Championships, Tashkent, Uzbekistan. It’s great news for Indian athletics. This boy is going to make us all proud for many more years. Congratulations to Bapi and coaches at Odisha Reliance HPC pic.twitter.com/0QXYOpiwI5
— Vineel Krishna (@rvineel_krishna) April 30, 2023
Bapi’s silver medal in was India’s first silver medal in the boys 400m hurdles event at the youth continental championships.
Bapi Hansda wins historic silver medal
17-year-old Bapi Hansda secured his silver medal win with an impressive timing of 51.38s – his personal best. The previous meet record was 51.96s and Bapi would’ve even won a gold if it had been in any of the earlier editions.
Moreover, Bapi Hansda was also running the 400m hurdles event only for the fifth time in his entire career. The recent event in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, was also his maiden international event.
Following the race, Bapi stated:
This was my first major international competition. I am very happy that I won silver. To get it with a personal best was even more satisfying.”
“I hope to keep improving in the future. Before the race, I was a little nervous as I had finished third in the heats. But before the race, the coach took me aside during the warm-ups and calmed me down. I felt pretty good after that and my mind was in a good space.”
Bapi Hansda brief bio and family
17 year old Bapi Hansda is a rising Indian athlete who was born in Basta in Balasore, a coastal city in Odisha. Hansda is a the youngest of five siblings, and grew up in a family riddled with poverty. Bapi and his family lost their father in 2008, which led the family down a road of struggles.
Eventually Bapi found his passion for sports at a very young age particularly in athletics. His family was in a tough spot financially and Bapi’s eldest brother even had to work as a sweeper at a railway station in order to fund his brother’s training in the early years.
Bapi Hansda’s and his families, struggles and talents shone through over time and Bapi was spotted by the Odisha High-Performance Center back in 2019. He has since then, been training under head coach Martin Owens and achieved so many great things.
Bapi Hansda achievements and highlights
Bapi Hansda gained prominence after winning first place in the 400m hurdles race at the 18th National Youth Athletics Championships in Udupi in March 2023. He won with an impressive time of 51.95s in the finals. Prior to the finals, he clocked a 51.90s record during the heats, his personal best and a meet record.
Following the win, Bapi became world No.1 in the Under-18 category for the boys 400m hurdles event. As such, he qualified to represent India for the Asian Youth Athletics Championships 2023.
Bapi Hansda then went on to win a silver in the recently held Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Uzbekistan. The young starlet will now be looking to secure wins and medals at the Commonwealth Youth Games 2023 scheduled in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago in August as well as the Junior World Championships, which will take place next year.
Bapi Hansda medals
Bapi Hansda has so far won the following medals:
| Medal | Event | Competition | Year |
| Gold medal | 400m hurdles | 18th National Youth Athletics Championships in Udupi | 2023 |
| Silver medal | 400m hurdles | Asian Youth Athletics Championships, Uzbekistan | 2023 |