Commonwealth Games 2026: Who is Vishal TK?

Vishal Thennarasu Kayalvizhi will represent India in the men's 400m at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. The 22 year old from Jolarpettai, Tamil Nadu, heads to his first Commonwealth games as the national record holder in the event with a personal best of 44.98 seconds.

Early days

Born on December 17, 2003, in Jolarpettai, Tamil Nadu, Vishal comes from a sporting family. His father, Thennarasu, was a football player who represented Tamil Nadu for several years and introduced him to sports from a young age. His mother is Kayalvizhi and he has a younger sister, Nakshatra.

Vishal initially competed in the 100m and 200m races during his school days before switching to the 400m.

At the age of 10, he left home and moved to Chennai to train at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The sacrifice meant spending most of his childhood away from his family as he focused on becoming a professional athlete.

Rise through the ranks

Vishal began competing regularly in the 400m and soon established himself as one of India's fastest quarter-milers.

He won the gold medal at the 2025 Federation Cup National Championships with a timing of 46.19 seconds before making his international breakthrough at the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea, where he won gold in the mixed 4x400m relay and silver in the men's 4x400m relay.

Achievements

Vishal first made his mark by progressing through the national circuit before emerging as one of India's leading 400m runners.

At the 2026 National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships, he won the gold medal in the men's 400m with a national record time of 45.12 seconds.

A few weeks later, he bettered his own record at the Federation Cup in Ranchi by clocking 44.98 seconds, becoming the first Indian man to break the 45 second barrier in the 400m.

Those performances secured his place in India's squad for the 2026 Commonwealth Games. He will now look to win a medal for India on his Commonwealth games debut.