Full Breakdown
Vithya Ramraj Breaks Four-Decade-Old Indian 400 m Hurdles Record to Win Bronze at Asian Games 2026
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Core Event: Record-Breaking Bronze in Nagoya
On September 28, 2026, Vithya Ramraj of India finished third in the women’s 400 m hurdles final at the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, recording a personal best of 54.75 seconds. The time eclipsed the national record of 55.42 seconds set by PT Usha at the Los Angeles Olympics on August 8, 1984, ending a 42-year reign. The performance secured a bronze medal for India and marked the first sub-55-second run by an Indian woman in the event.
Background & Context
PT Usha’s 55.42-second mark, established at the 1984 Olympics, remained the longest-standing Indian athletics record until Ramraj’s breakthrough. Ramraj first matched the record with a 55.42-second run at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, earning bronze but leaving the record officially unchanged. Born on September 20, 1998, in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, Ramraj rose from a modest family—her father a truck driver—to national prominence after joining the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu hostel in Erode and later training under coach Nehpal Singh Rathore.
Data & Statistics
- Winning time: Vithya Ramraj 54.75 s (personal best) – new Indian record, 0.67 s faster than PT Usha’s mark.
- Gold: Mariam Kareem (UAE) 54.31 s – Asian Games record.
- Silver: Adelina Zems (Kazakhstan) 54.58 s – personal best.
- Fifth place: Anu Raghavan (India) 55.88 s – personal best.
- Mixed 4 × 400 m relay (India): Silver, time 3:14.46; Ramraj ran the anchor leg.
- India’s athletics tally: 14 medals (6 silver, 8 bronze); overall Games tally 40 medals, 12th in the standings.
Official Statements & Responses
- Athletics Federation of India (AFI) confirmed the new national record of 54.75 seconds and highlighted the race as one of the fastest in Asian Games history.
Verbatim Quotes
- “I'm so happy. I don't know how to express this. I never thought I would go below the 56-second barrier... After the result came, I was so happy. I never thought, even in my dreams, that I would finish in such a good time. I am missing my mom's food. I will go home and eat my mom's food,” — Hurdler Vithya Ramraj
- “My coach said we would go 54 seconds,” — Hurdler Vithya Ramraj
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
All consulted sources agree on the final time of 54.75 seconds, the previous record of 55.42 seconds, and the medal positions. No substantive discrepancies were identified regarding the core facts of the event.
What’s Next
The Indian team is scheduled to compete in the women’s 4 × 400 m relay later in the Games, with Ramraj expected to feature in the line-up. No further individual events for her have been announced at this stage.