World Athletics U20 Championships: National Record Holder Pooja Singh Leads India's 36-Member Medal Hunt in Oregon
India's next generation of athletics stars is ready for its biggest global test.
National record holder and reigning Asian U20 champion Pooja Singh will spearhead a 36-member Indian contingent at the World Athletics U20 Championships 2026, to be held at the iconic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, from August 5 to 9.
The Indian squad, comprising 23 men and 13 women, arrives in Oregon riding a wave of confidence after a historic performance at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, where it finished second behind China with a record haul of 19 medals, including 10 gold.
All eyes will be on the 19-year-old Pooja Singh, who has rapidly emerged as one of India's brightest athletics prospects. The high jumper rewrote the national record books earlier this year by clearing 1.93m to win Asian U20 gold, surpassing the previous senior national record of 1.92m set by Sahana Kumari in 2012. Her effort also broke a championship record that had stood since 2006 and earned her qualification for the Commonwealth Games, where she finished eighth.
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India's medal hopes will also rest on Asian U20 champions Nitin Gupta, who won gold in the men's 5,000m race walk, and Shahnavaz Khan, the continental champion in the men's long jump.
The 2026 edition is expected to be the largest World Athletics U20 Championships in history, with more than 1,800 athletes from 147 countries set to compete, eclipsing the previous participation record set in Lima in 2024.
India will be looking to improve on its showing in Lima, where a 43-member squad returned with a lone medal after Aarti clinched bronze in the women's 10,000m race walk.
The championships have historically served as a launchpad for some of India's biggest athletics icons. Neeraj Chopra became the country's first World U20 champion after winning javelin gold with a world U20 record in 2016, while Hima Das created history in 2018 by becoming India's first track world U20 champion with her gold medal in the women's 400m.
With promising talent spread across sprints, middle-distance races, jumps, throws, race walk and relays, India will hope its newest generation can announce itself on the world stage in Oregon.
(With inputs from ANI)