National Indoor Athletics Championships | When the technique is right, performance follows: record-breaker Baranica’s mantra for success

Baranica Elangovan breaks the National Record in pole vault at the National Indoor Athletics Championships by prioritizing technique over performance.

In a 2023 interview, Baranica Elangovan had insisted she was not chasing the National Record (NR), wary that dwelling on it could shift her focus away from the technical aspects of her training.

On Tuesday, at the inaugural edition of the National Indoor Athletics Championships in Bhubaneswar, that clarity paid off. The Tamil Nadu vaulter cleared 4.22m in the women’s pole vault final to break the NR and also register a Personal Best (PB), surpassing the mark held by Statemate Rosy Meena Paulraj.

The breakthrough followed a series of near misses, with Baranica saying she had attempted to break the record at least five times before finally succeeding.

“I’m very happy. I have been focusing on my technique rather than just performance. I’m not thinking about whether I can clear a height or not. I just wanted to listen and apply what I practice in training, and it has finally clicked for me,” Baranica told The Hindu.

Baranica attempted 4.25m thrice on the day but fell short, pointing to a lack of speed in her run-up. She added that she has not yet peaked this season, having consciously prioritised technical refinement. This approach has already brought consistency. Days earlier, she cleared 4.10m at the Indian Open Jumps to breach the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) qualification mark for the Asian Games.

“I’m solely focusing on getting my basics right. If I focus only on performance, technique suffers. When the technique is right, performance follows,” she said.