Athletics
Who is Dutee Chand? Age, Records, Biography, Medals, Earnings, Olympics performance
Dutee Chand is hoping for a medal in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, let’s look at her life and career
Dutee Chand finished last in her heat of Women's 200m (Source: The Indian Express)
Dutee Chand qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics as the third Indian woman to compete in the women's 100 metres. Chand has the women's 100m national record. The Indian sprinter is gearing up to compete in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics 2020, this time with more hopes, medals, and records.
How old is Dutee Chand?
Chand, who is 25 years old, was born on February 3, 1996, in the Jajpur District of Orissa. She had followed in the footsteps of her sister Saraswati and began running at a young age. She used to run barefoot at first, but she eventually began to receive adequate training and was enrolled in a government sports hostel with her sister.
What are Dutee Chand's achievements?
Dutee Chand gained prominence after becoming a national champion in the under 18 category in the 100m event in 2012, clocking a time of 11.85 seconds. This was followed by her strong performances at the 2013 Asian Athletics Championships, World Youth Championships, and the National Senior Athletics Championships.
She was set to take her first major move in her international career after winning two gold medals at the 2014 Asian Junior Athletics Championships in Taipei.
As soon as the hyperandrogenism rule was changed, she began gaining speed and competing in track events. She competed in the 2016 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships in 60 metres, where she set the Indian national record in the qualification round, clocking in at 7.28 seconds, and went on to win the bronze medal in the final, clocking in at 7.37 seconds.
At the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Chand won two medals. Chand's silver medal in the women's 100m finals was India's first in the category in 32 years since PT Usha's performance in 1986. Her second silver medal came three days later in the women's 200m final, which came to India 16 years after Saraswati Saha's gold in the event in 2002.
Dutee Chand carried the momentum into the next year, winning gold at the 2019 Summer Universiade in Napoli, becoming the first Indian to do so at a global competition.
Earnings
Dutee Chand earns Rs. 50,000 each month as part of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports flagship programme, The Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).
Olympics Performance
In 2016, at the XXVI International Meeting G. Kosanov Memorial in Kazakhstan, the Indian sprinter smashed her own national mark twice on the same day. She finished in 11.24 seconds, securing her first Olympic berth. She was the third Indian woman to compete in the Women's 100m at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, though she did not go beyond the heats, clocking 11.69 seconds.
Dutee set a new national record earlier this week when she clocked 11.17 seconds in the Indian Grand Prix 4. This time, Dutee was given a ticket to the Olympics based on her current World Ranking. Dutee is now rated 44th in the world in the 100m, and 51st in the 200m.
Dutee Chand is constantly training in preparation for the forthcoming Tokyo Olympics, where she hopes to win a medal.
